Revolutions FuMoofu!
by Jen-chan-shaw
Summary: The Revolution is over, and our heroes can finally get some well deserved rest and snuggle time in! KnM and Mai Hime x-over (with cameos from other series). Chimeko. Shiznat. X-over. 88% Fluff, 10% Lemon, 2% Bad Cow Jokes!
1. Chp 1 - Two Years Later - A Sexy Reunion

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMoofu

Revolutions FuMooFu – Chapter 1 - Two Years Later; A Sexy Reunion

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic

By Jen-chan

jen-chan at shaw dot ca

October 11, 2014 - October 12, 2014

Word Count: Approx 6,800

**Note:** This fanfic takes place in the same continuity as a previous story of mine called 'Revolutions' which was a T-rated fantasy/romance 3-way crossover between Kannazuki no Miko, Revolutionary Girl Utena and Mai Hime, and can be found on the Mai Hime Board (or, I guess, through my profile page).

No knowledge of that fic, and no knowledge of Revolutionary Girl Utena, is necessary to enjoy this series, because Revolutions FuMoofu is meant to be just fluffy, smutty, cracky, slice-of-life romance/comedy between the casts of Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime, with some Utena characters thrown in as cameos (and probably some other series too). You can think of the characters from Utena who show up in this fic as OC who play supporting roles if you want. Still, if you have the time, please consider giving 'Revolutions' a chance, but if you don't, here are the important character points that will help you to enjoy the context of the relationships as I present them in FuMoofu:

1) After the end of KnM, Chikane died and was reborn as a baby, who then grew up once again while Himeko continued to age. This means that Himeko is 16 years older than Chikane. Chikane retained all her memories of her previous life-that-never-was, while Himeko, as well as the rest of the world, forgot, since that life technically never happened.

2) Chikane ended up going to Fuuka Academy for high school (grade 10), and became roommates with Natsuki (grade 11). Through the course of the plot of Revolutions, she becomes good friends with Natsuki, Shizuru, Mai and Mikoto.

3) Himeko looked all over the world for Chikane, but ultimately never did find her, and was persistently pursued by Juri, whom she thought, on some level, actually _was_ Chikane (or rather, her 'someone-special-just-for-me' because she didn't know that someone's name was 'Chikane'), because Juri and Chikane's souls and backstory are very thematically similar. She dates Juri for 2 years, and doesn't realize what she has with Juri isn't 'love' but actually just 'deep affection' until she actually meets Chikane.

4) There is a lot of drama and plot and the world almost ends but is ultimately saved. Everyone is happy. The Hime all have their Childs and Hime powers, but don't have to use them for anything (unless they want to). Monsters exist in the world, but the proper authority figures of humanity are doing a decent job holding them back.

6) Himeko remembers every single one of her past lives ever. She leaves Juri for Chikane.

7) Chikane gets expelled from Fuuka Academy for trying to destroy the world amongst other things, and ends up getting an opportunity to study music (which she's really good at) with Kaoru Miki.

8) This fic takes place 2 years after the end of Revolutions, when Chikane is 18, Natsuki and Shizuru are in university (20ish) and Himeko is, well, you can do the math. :)

Please enjoy! There are more author's notes at the end and comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated!

* * *

_* 2 YEARS LATER*_

"And the award for Best Original Score goes to...!"

The audience became hushed as the presenter took a deep breath, and paused for (overly) dramatic tension.

"... Chikane Himemiya! for 'KH Number 87', from the movie, 'Forever'!"

The hall was quiet for but a moment, before the entire auditorium erupted in thunderous applause, and the youngest composer, foreign born, ever to be acknowledged by the academy hesitantly stood up from her seat, somewhere in the middle of the room, an expression of wonderment on her face. Actually, she was more or less pulled to her feet from her seat by her light blue haired mentor beside her, Kaoru Miki, who then gave her a proud hug, before prodding her to get up onto the stage.

All of Japan seemed to erupt in celebration and pride as one of her daughters was celebrated in one of the toughest, most finicky industries halfway across the world. Chikane walked carefully to the podium and accepted the award from the announcer, who beamed happily at her, and gave her a one-armed hug and air kissed her cheek before giving up the spot light to her. Standing in front of the podium, wearing a beautiful, strapless, ivory evening gown and holding onto the famous golden statuette with the world watching, she blinked at the camera, as though she wouldn't quite figure out what all the fuss was about.

Eventually, the applause died down, and Chikane looked down at the heavy golden award in her hands for a moment.

Then she looked up at the camera, and swallowed nervously. She looked directly into its lenses, imploring it to transmit her thoughts to the one she wanted most to hear them. Millions of viewers became lost in the depths of her blue-green eyes, ensuring her popularity and stardom (and employment via marketability if not for talent) for many years to come, though her fond gaze was, of course, only for one.

The world awaited her words.

She didn't have very many of them. A grand total of only five, in fact. And she spoke them in her native Japanese.

"Himeko." She said softly. "Aitai. Onegai. Aitai yo."

And with that, she bowed in gratitude for the acknowledgement from the academy, and stepped off the stage. Translators all over the world went nuts trying to decipher her words.

_'Rice balls!'_ They said. _'She wants rice balls!'_

Eventually, they managed to get it right.

_Himeko. I miss you. Please. I want to see you._

And then, the world went absolutely crazy, or at least, its love-sick, romantic, or tabloid reading or (lulz seeking) members did, and there were gossip columns, forum posts, twitter blasts and tumblr memes (_rice balls, rice balls, rice balls, rice balls_) for days discussing the appropriate or inappropriate nature of the short acceptance speech, though, none of that would become known to the young woman who gave it for a while yet.

Kaoru Miki looked down at his phone, and saw he'd gotten a text. _'You tell that drama queen that she can stick that statue up her-'_ he sweatdropped as Chikane sat back down beside him and offered her a weak smile. "That was memorable." He smiled. "And Juri says congratulations."

"I'm sorry, Miki-sensei," Chikane said softly, brow crinkling sheepishly. "I should have thanked you for all your tutelage and guidance and... and everything you've provided for me the last two years. I... I wouldn't be here, at all, without you. This statue is more for you than it is for me." The look on her face was sincerely apologetic and she offered the award and all the accolades that accompanied it to the mentor whom had guided her so meticulously over the last two years to her current success.

Miki laughed, fond eyes twinkling. "Don't worry about it, Chikane-kun. You thank me everyday already, endlessly. Do you not think me already aware of the depths of your gratitude?" He gave her another hug, a longer one, in her seat.

But, despite Miki's words, still, Chikane uttered once again, against his neck, clearly moved, "thank you, Miki-sensei."

After being released from the embrace, Chikane gave Miki the statue to look at, even as she asked, pensively, "... did Arisugawa-san say anything else?"

Miki smiled kindly. His protégé was being oddly transparent tonight, though, perhaps, considering everything, maybe that wasn't so odd. "I'm sorry, but it seems like the storm warning still hasn't lifted so they're still stuck on that island they've been shooting _Miracles_' catalog at. I know you're disappointed, Chikane-kun. I know Himeko-san really wanted to be here too..."

"It's alright, Miki-sensei," Chikane replied as politely as she could, able to keep most of the disappointment she was feeling from her voice.

But she was definitely feeling that disappointment within, and keenly.

When she had discovered weeks ago that she had been nominated for an Academy award, everyone in her social circle had been excited - except for her - for the night of the festivities was October 1st, the same night as her common birthday with her beloved. The plans she had been making with Himeko were effectively dashed when her publicist told her (or more precisely, _screamed_ at her), that under no uncertain terms could she skip out on the 8Xth Academy Awards, for a _birthday_ party. Successful though she was, apparently, Chikane just wasn't famous enough to get away with such diva-like behaviour (yet).

After that, things had started to fall apart when Daidouji Tomoyo and Arisugawa Juri, the owners of the fashion line 'Miracles' (and Himeko's largest clients), had then called the photographer up to book her on a lengthy photoshoot engagement in Okinawa. Himeko had only booked the job on the promise that it be wrapped up by September 30th at the latest, so that she could still attend the Academy Awards with Chikane, but mother nature herself proved to be the final obstacle as Tropical Storm #18 chose that week to touch down.

Chikane sighed. Sometimes, she wondered if it really _had_ been such a good idea to take Kaoru Miki's offer and to become his student. For the last two years, she had studied music and composition with him at the Conservatoire de Paris, and in the last year, her studies had blossomed into an out-and-out career, as some of her pieces had been overheard by a movie producer who had then used several of them in a film about vampires and giant robots that was waaaay more successful than it had any right to be.

It wasn't that Chikane wasn't thankful for the success - she absolutely was - but it just kept her away from Himeko at such awkward and inopportune times!

_*sigh* 'I would have gotten to see her so much more had I just stayed at Fuuka from the beginning...'_

Though that thought too, was wishful thinking, as she had already been expelled from Fuuka Academy at that point.

But before Chikane could ask her next follow up question, suddenly, her own phone went crazy with a plethora of messages - her entire contact list seeming to want to wish her congratulations all at once.

There were so many of them, her phone was jerking around like it was having an epileptic seizure, so Chikane simply slid the device back into her clutch.

As soon as that happened, however, Miki's phone started to buzz. Looking down at it, he raised an eyebrow and said, "uh, Chikane-kun, it appears that your friend Kuga Natsuki has a message for you..."

"Natsuki-sempai? Why would she message you, Sensei...?" Chikane's voice trailed off as she looked at the message in confusion, and her eyes widened: _Look up and back. 2nd Balcony. 4 o'clock._

Both composers looked at the cryptic message before slowly following its instructions, turning around in their chairs and craning their necks...

... and there, in the audience, they could spy several people madly waving their arms at them.

Chikane squinted, and then a broad smile came to her face as she recognized the madly waving idiots immediately: Kuga Natsuki was the one with her whole arm in the air, while Fujino Shizuru was seating beside her, smiling knowingly, her wave a slightly more discrete action. Seated beside her, was a woman with cascades of wavy, dark grey hair whom Chikane couldn't quite place, but she definitely recognized flame-haired Arisugawa Juri sitting beside her, so that had to be Daidouji Tomoyo, and then, last in the row, beside Juri was...

The blue-black haired girl's heart skipped a beat.

_'Himeko!'_

Chikane's face light up brilliantly, and had there been any cameras actually still trained on her, she would have broken the hearts of 58% of the world with her beautiful, genuine smile.

Himeko, seeing Chikane's smile, returned it with one of her shy own, cheeks blushing brightly, even as she mouthed wordlessly to her, _'Chikane-chan!'_

* * *

"That was a mean joke to play," Chikane admonished her love, though she couldn't help but smile.

"It was Tomoyo-chan's idea," Himeko confessed, her own smile now apologetic. "We managed to leave the island just before they closed the airport, but we weren't sure if we'd make it to the show on time, or if they'd let us in for being late. Luckily, she was able to pull some strings, and we managed to get in, but then she thought it might be a good opportunity to surprise you."

Himeko closed her eyes as she snuggled in the seat beside Chikane, resting her head on Chikane's shoulder. "And I actually wasn't going to go through with it! I would have told you, Chikane-chan, except I couldn't because after your speech, my phone exploded with three hundred messages from everyone I've ever met telling me to get in contact with you, and I couldn't even get to the 'send' function! Everyone was laughing at me so hard! They refused to help me, and in the end, only Natsuki-chan was willing to relay the message for me, but then we saw you put your phone away, so we had to wrestle Miki-san's number out of Juri-chan!"

Chikane chuckled, greatly enjoying Himeko's story. "It looks like I might owe Natsuki-sempai a favor."

"That might be nice," Himeko agreed. "But maybe not necessary. I think Natsuki-chan was just really happy to even be able to get into the ceremonies and then into the after parties with Shizuru-chan, so she might think you two are even."

"Ah, I didn't think Natsuki-sempai was the type who would care for such parties." Chikane replied, cocking her head to the side, "nor did I think she would ever agree to model for you in Miracle's photoshoot. You were shooting the swimwear line in Okinawa, were you not?"

The tawny-haired photographer giggled. "Yes, that's right. Let's just say it's pretty amazing the types of things that Shizuru-chan can get Natsuki-chan to do. I'll have to get some lessons from her, I think..." She gave her beloved an almost-sly look out of the corner of her eyes. Well, as close to 'sly' as Kurusugawa Himeko was capable of anyway; the squinty-look seemed more like she was missing a contact lense instead.

Chikane chuckled, a hint of feigned worry in her laughter. "Really? Hmm. I may have to help Natsuki-sempai even the score a little then..."

_'Or profusely thank Shizuru-sempai.' _

They drifted off to a comfortable silence in the car, before Himeko looked upwards at Chikane from where she was still nuzzled against her. "Ne, Chikane-chan? Are you sure you don't have to go to any after parties? Juri-chan led me to believe that it was a career limiting move to not at least show your face for a little while at the Vogue event."

Chikane meant to shake her head in the negative, but that only ended up with her nuzzling her cheek against the top of Himeko's hair. She gave the fingers interlaced between her own a squeeze. "You made it here. No party could be better than that."

The tawny haired woman laughed softly, nuzzling back. "Then maybe we _can_ have a birthday party for just for the two of us. Your last invite to me was only 18 years ago, and we never _did_ get to celebrate it."

Chikane blushed, remembering the invite in question, from her previous life that never actually did happen. "Sounds like I owe Himeko quite the grand soiree."

Himeko laughed again. "If I wanted that, then I would have insisted we went with everyone else to the Vogue party."

And Chikane could not help but chuckle again.

They spent the rest of the limousine ride in silence, enjoying the dizzying sights of the lively North American city from behind black tinted windows, until the driver dropped them off at the swanky hotel that Chikane was staying at. It wasn't until Chikane was pulling her keycard from her clutch while they rode the elevator up did a thought occur to her. "You just arrive in Los Angeles today, didn't you, Himeko? Where is your luggage?"

Himeko didn't answer Chikane. She just smiled coyly, a faint, pleased blush on her cheeks, and, bringing out her own keycard, swiped and pressed the button for one of the upmost floors of the hotel before Chikane could finish pressing the button for her own floor.

Chikane stared at the name on the elevator panel beside the lighted button Himeko had pressed, and felt a touch of heat come to her own cheeks.

_'The honeymoon suite...?'_

"Miki-san might have helped me to arrange for your stuff to be moved up to my room," Himeko admitted shyly, as the elevator slowed, chimed, and the doors opened directly into the hotel's most impressive suite.

The suite was massive, and the first thing that grabbed Chikane's attention was the floor to ceiling glass windows that stretched over 180 degrees around, offering a panoramic view of the city of angels, its towers and billboards all shimmering and glowing with night life well into the distance, all neon and golden.

There was no noise coming from the city though - the sound proofing was top rate, and the only thing Chikane could hear was the soothing trickling of the water fountain, as well as soft, barely-there mood music, coming from the speakers built into the room.

The light in the room itself had been dimmed, bathing the very chic and modern furniture (and everything else for that matter) in a romantic and warm, soft orange light, supplemented by several strategically placed groups of candles.

For a moment, Chikane could only stare, awed, from the elevator. She had never experienced such luxury; not in this lifetime anyway, and the sheer decadence of it all could not help but bring back a sense of nostalgia for her life-that-never-had-been at Himemiya Manor.

"... do you like it?" Himeko asked, a hint of apprehension in her words, a slight crinkle of concern in her brow. But that trepidation quickly disappeared from Himeko's face when Chikane, still holding onto her beloved's hand, took a few tentative steps into the room, looked around, and then took a few more (much more excited steps) towards the windows, staring out at the beautiful city with a joyful fascination on her face. She then turned to bestow upon Himeko a smile of complete adoration and fondness.

"This is incredible," Chikane breathed. "Himeko, you shouldn't have! This must have cost a fortune!" Since she hadn't lived in the lap of luxury this lifetime, the blue-black haired young woman could appreciate the value of a dollar much more keenly. And many a dollar_ must_ have been spent to accord _this_ accommodation.

Himeko returned Chikane's smile with a very pleased one of her own. Stepping forward, she tilted her head up a little, and kissed Chikane deeply, full on the lips and lingering there, and the luxury of the hotel room and the magnificence of its views beyond its windows, were completely lost on Chikane as there was simply nothing in the world worth paying attention to beyond Himeko's marvelous mouth on her own, her intoxicating perfume befuddling her mind, and her delightful body in her arms.

When they finally broke off the kiss however long later, Himeko's eyes were shimmering with desire, as she continued to look at those lips she had just parted from, reaching up and touching them lightly with her finger tips, as though she wanted to still be pressed against them. "Happy Birthday, Chikane-chan." Her voice was soft, sultry.

"Happy Birthday, Himeko." Chikane could only whisper back, completely lost in the craving in Himeko's eyes.

They held each other for a while longer, savoring one another, until Himeko gave Chikane a soft peck on her neck, and then pulled away. "Just give me a moment to get ready, okay? I'll be back in a minute." And then she padded softly away to the bathroom.

Chikane watched Himeko go, and felt her heart pound louder and louder in anticipation in her chest. She continued to stare at the closed bathroom door, wondering if this was a dream and when she would have to wake up from it.

Looking over at the bed with scattered rose petals all over it, Chikane walked slowly towards it, and sat down on its edge. She idly played with one of the rose petals, even as she felt her heart beat faster and faster. She looked at the bottle of champagne between twin crystal flutes in the elegant tray on the night stand beside the table, and then picked it up to read the label.

It wasn't until she caught herself reading and re-reading those words without being able to understand them that Chikane realize that there was something besides anticipation and excitement causing her heart to race: anxiety.

Over the last two years, there had been plenty enough of excuses to reason away why they hadn't yet consummated their love for one another beyond sleeping in the same bed. First there had been Himeko's rehabilitation and therapy to get through, then the physical distance between them, and through all that there was still the whole under-aged thing to contend with, but none of those had been the real reason why they hadn't yet been intimate.

So shocked was Chikane with this realization that she missed the click of the bathroom door opening, and it wasn't until she heard Himeko's voice say, a little unsurely, "... Chikane-chan?" did she look up to find that her beloved had changed out of her dark, stylish evening gown and into a crimson red silk chemise with a matching silk short robe.

Chikane's throat went a bit dry and her eyes widened at seeing Himeko an absolute vision of sensuality. She opened and closed her mouth a few times, but wasn't quite able to get any words to come out.

But somehow, Himeko seemed to be able to read the feeling that was squeezing her heart so, and an expression of concern came onto her own face. Tying her robe up, Himeko padded softly to the bed and sat down beside Chikane, holding her hand. "What's wrong, Chikane-chan?"

Chikane blinked helplessly a few more times, still unable to quite articulate her thoughts. She looked away from her beloved, feeling, suddenly, quite ashamed of her sudden lack of courage.

Then Chikane felt a hand on her cheek and let Himeko turn her face back up. She found herself unable to look at anything besides Himeko's sincere, purple gaze. "Oh, Chikane-chan, I'm sorry! It's too much, isn't it?" And Himeko was suddenly embarrassed and babbling in run on sentences of apology, even as she drew Chikane into a chaste hug, wrapping her arms around the young woman's waist. " I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I wasn't thinking! We don't have to do anything if you're not ready yet! I'm sorry!"

"N-No!" Chikane said quickly, gently extracting herself from the older woman's embrace, so she could catch those worried amethyst eyes with her earnest blue-green own, though she still held her hands. "I'm ready, Himeko! I'm ready! I just... I just..." And then Chikane's voice got really, really tiny and unsure. "... I don't know if I'll be any _good_..."

Himeko's eyes widened, as she finally came to understand exactly what was on her beloved's mind - what had given her such anxiety - and she couldn't help but let a small, highly amused smile come to her face.

Himemiya Chikane? She who was good at almost _everything_ she did, was having performance anxiety? What sort of strange, fake world had she fallen into?!

"Oh, Chikane-chan, my darling, Chikane-chan..." releasing her hold on Chikane's hand, instead, Himeko reached out, and tenderly cupped Chikane's cheek in a palm. She leaned forward, and kissed her beloved again, deeply, a kiss that very clearly communicated her passion, her desire, her love.

When finally that kiss ended, Himeko rested her forehead against Chikane's own to steady the younger woman, whom she suspected with probably feeling a little dizzy at the moment.

Unable to keep the shyness out of her own voice, Himeko asked, a little nervously, "... do you... want me to show you...?"

She could feel Chikane tense up a little in her arms, somehow embarrassed, pleased, nervous and excited all at the same time, before the blue-black haired young woman bashfully nodded her head, ever so slightly.

And Himeko could feel the butterflies inside her tummy all flap their wings at the same time.

"Okay."

Himeko kissed Chikane again, parting her lips to get a taste of her sweet, sweet mouth, gently lowering her down onto the bed, until Chikane's long blue-black hair fanned out over the pillows. The tawny haired woman carefully worked her way down her beloved's shimmering, ivory, evening dress - the one that had befuddled Himeko so and made sitting in that auditorium so difficult and torturous - tugging at zippers and lace ties, carefully working the beautiful dress off its owner's shoulders, breasts, waist, hips, legs, knees, ankles - feet - whoops! one got caught! - there we go - feet!, and letting the silk dress slip quietly down off the side of the bed.

Next came the lacy white undergarments - bra, bustier, panties, garter, and stockings. These took a little more patience, given the finery of the fasteners, but luckily Himeko was a fashion photographer and knew her way around the buttons and hooks without damaging them though the deliberateness of her actions - the warmth of the tips of her fingers as she gingerly worked her way down, coupled by the moisture of her lips, was enough to already drive Chikane's arousal up to heights the young woman hadn't known existed.

Maybe, in the future, there would come a time when their passion for one another was so urgent, they could no longer bother with removing all clothing, but this was their first, and Himeko wanted to show her beloved what lovemaking was all about - properly and patiently.

And when there was nothing left to remove, and Chikane was left shivering as much from the cool air in the suite as from anticipation, Himeko sat back, straddled across her partner's hips and gently took one of Chikane's hands to place it on her own breast, still clothed under robe and chemise.

"First..."

Chikane swallowed, pulling herself partially upright, even as she marveled at the silk under her palm and the warmth under the silk, gently moving her thumb over the flesh and across the sensitive tip that crowned it, resulting in a sigh being released from Himeko's lips.

With a shy smile, Chikane looked upwards at her beloved, and pulled at the fabric that held Himeko's robe in place, unknotting the bow in one smooth motion. The silk was so soft, it slipped off of Himeko's shoulders seemingly of its own accord, falling quietly and obediently away, forgotten. Then, she carefully lifted the edge of the chemise up, messing up Himeko's golden hair a little as she pulled it over her head, though Chikane was careful not to allow any of the hooks to catch onto Himeko's hair, and fun, sexy wiggle later, and soon Chikane had done for Himeko what her lover had done for her, and they were both free of their clothing.

"Next..."

With eyes sparkling with desire and maybe a little bit of mischief, Himeko maneuvered herself over top of her lover once more, and brushed her lips over Chikane's own, light as a feather's touch, and then sent the trail of sweet, light kisses down onto her throat, and across her collar bone. Strands of her hair slowly dragging behind, the brushing sensation they left in their wake amplifying the tingling Chikane felt all over her skin, raising fine goosebumps across her arms.

Eyes almost rolling into the back of her head, her mouth slightly open in rapture, Chikane tilted her head upwards, subconsciously raising her chest upwards for Himeko to claim, which the tawny-hair woman did so with relish, now bringing the warmth and wetness of her tongue into play, teasing sensitive skin with just enough pressure to leave her lover almost begging for more. A low whimper escaped Chikane's throat, and she raised a shivering hand to the back of Himeko's head, her fingers kneading into her scalp almost pleadingly.

And, of course, it was difficult for Himeko to _not_ give Chikane what she was wordlessly imploring her for, for she loved the young woman so, and only ever wanted to give her anything and everything it was her Chikane-chan desired, so the almost torturous arousal that was gripping Chikane in the base of her tummy was almost mirrored in intensity to the hunger that ached inside of Himeko's own.

With more effort and self control than she knew herself to even be capable of, Himeko spent her time wisely and patiently, lavishing attention on every inch of Chikane's skin, kissing every finger, every toe, dancing her fingers across every muscle, until she was quite certain that she had reduced her lover into a boneless, quivering ball of jelly.

With eyes clouded so heavily with need she could barely see straight, Chikane tried once more to plead for release _\- please, Himeko, p-please...!_ \- and finally, only then did Himeko finally acquiescent to stroke her beloved's tortured, tortured centre, and send her tumbling head long into a world she'd never, ever visited before, never even knew existed.

For a moment (well, much longer than just a moment), Chikane was not quite sure where she was or maybe even who she was, and the expression on her face was one Himeko burned into her memory as one she would never, ever forget, 100 years from now, 100 _lifetimes_ from now.

And when Chikane finally came back down to earth, her eyes fluttering open as she breathed deeply, the gaze she gave her lover was filled with such adoration that Himeko could not help but blush, and sink into the pillows beside her lover, gazing back at her with silent fondness.

They laid on their sides, facing one another, drinking in one another, their legs intertwined.

Chikane gazed into Himeko's eyes for how long, neither of them were quite sure, before hints of a blush came to her cheeks, even as she smiled, and her gaze drifted down Himeko's body. Her gaze settled on Himeko's lower abdomen, and she cautiously moved a hand out towards the series of scars that were there, her eyes flicking back up for just a moment, seeming to beg her lover for permission.

The redness of embarressment in Himeko's cheeks took on a deeper hue as she could not help but let a hint of shame enter into her heart. Still, she nodded, the gaze in her eyes a little sad now - which was not missed by her lover - and Chikane gently touched the scars - so, so, many of them - stabs and slashes, cuts and gouges, reminders of the terrific, horrific battle that had happened two years earlier, to the day, when the Revolution had happened.

Chikane knew that Himeko was self-conscious of the wounds that had left her hospitalized for weeks and had required months and months of rehabilitation, but she herself found them to be nothing short of beautiful: badges of honor of her beloved's role in saving the world that she herself had put in such peril, two years ago.

The fingers she traced over Himeko's wounds were tender, and she reached forward to kiss away the shame in Himeko's eyes, before moving downwards to lavished her attention upon them, to let her beloved know that she did not find them unsightly, kissing each one tenderly, acknowledging each one.

And as she kissed and caressed at Himeko's body, she could feel her lover's anticipation build, as this brought her lips quite close to Himeko's centre, and she could feel her beloved shift her weight and position a little, to allow Chikane a little more access, a little more encouragement, a little more...

"Then..."

She could feel her lover's direction in the way Himeko's fingers dug encouragingly into her scalp, the tightening of the muscles in her legs and abdomen.

"Yes..."

She could taste her lover's conveyance, in her sweat and her scent, which she savored, intoxicated.

"... yes..."

She could hear her lover's instructions in her fevered moans and feathered sighs, and Chikane realized she had really had nothing to worry about, when she finally heard Himeko's third and throaty, _"... yes...!" _

And so, under first Himeko's tender ministration, followed after by her gentle instruction, they made love, and Chikane was able to finally give herself wholeheartedly to the one she had treasured for so many lifetimes, and would continue to treasure for many more lifetimes to come.

* * *

In the aftermath of their lovemaking, Chikane laid on her back with her head on a pillow, one arm up, with the back of her hand on her brow, an expression of wonderment on her face. Himeko rested her head on Chikane's shoulder while the younger woman held her close, her face flushed but her eyes relaxed and mellow, a small, happy smile on her face.

Presently, Chikane kissed the top of Himeko's head, and the tawny-haired woman looked up at her. "Hmm?"

Chikane had a slightly troubled expression on her face. "Are we on the same flight back to Fuuka, tomorrow?"

Himeko nodded. "I think so."

"And Director Himeno has you set up in the Teacher's residences?"

Himeko nodded again. "That's right. I might have bought the restaurant, but I can't rightly stay at Mai-chan's long term. There isn't the space."

"While I'm in the student dorm." Chikane sighed. "It's going to be a scandal, you know. We should find our own place as soon as possible." And Chikane couldn't help but smile sheepishly. "Because I don't think I'm going to be able to keep my hands off of you."

Himeko laughed, and then her smile turned a little shy. "Well... we do have a few more hours before we have to get up...?"

They were very late for their flight the next morning.

None of their friends were surprised.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Yes, I know, the Oscars are usually in February, not October. I just couldn't resist. =P

An earlier draft of this chapter had Chikane totally angsting it up, since this was going to be Their First Time, and with all the emotional baggage from what happened in KnM canon, I thought it would be inappropriate and disrespectful to not address that... and then I thought, you know what? I've _written _that fic already. More than once. So let's just not go there this time. And I have made peace with it. (And this series is supposed to be fluffy, dammit!)

This chapter is dedicated to Yukari Yakumo, who gave me my second review ever on Revolutions. I hope the Chimeko here was fluffy enough for you? (guubear was first but doesn't count since she's my wifu. (Just kidding sweetie! You totally count!)).

Cheers,

jen-chan

jen-chan-shaw. livejournal. com

* * *

OMAKE I: Inferiority Complex

[CHIKANE and HIMEKO are sitting on the edge of the bed, talking about their feelings.]

HIMEKO: [OUTSIDE VOICE] It's okay! We don't have to do anything until you're ready! [INSIDE VOICE] Oh gooood! How much longer am I going to have to self-gratify?!

CHIKANE: No no! I'm ready! I'm totally ready! I'm just... [Pushes index fingers together] What if I'm not as good as Shizuru was her first time?

HIMEKO: [INSIDE VOICE] Woohooooo! [OUTSIDE VOICE] Oh, Chikane-chan, I'm sure you'll be- [BOGGLES] Wait, what? We're about to get it on and you're thinking about Fujino-san?!

CHIKANE: I can't help it! [Turns away from HIMEKO and looks at the CEILING while SHAKING HER FIST INTENTLY at it]. We're sharing screen time again, and for some reason, the author seems to think Shizuru's more competent than I am at everything I do! I mean, I kinda understood in the last fic, 'cause we were on the Mai Hime board last time, but now we're on the KnM board! So shouldn't I be better than she is at everything?!

HIMEKO: [Takes CHIKANE's face in her hands and forces the young woman to look at her]. Sweetie, I am the only TAWNY-HAIRED-WOMAN you are allowed to obsess over, okay?

CHIKANE: [Sheepishly] Yes'am.

* * *

OMAKE II: In her Contract

[It's the OSCAR scene.]

ANNOUNCER: And the award for Best Original Score goes to Suzushirou Haruka! For 'Dona Dona' from the movie, 'Cows to the Slaughter'!

[The audience erupts in applause, and HARUKOW makes her way up the stairs onto the stage for her award. What is a HARUKOW? It is an impressively sized cow with purplely-grey eyes and shoulder length blond hair with short bangs. Normally, HARUKOW's hide around her front half is green and somehow contains markings that resemble the cut of an Executive Director's vest. Her middle and rear section resembles a dark grey pleated skirt while its back legs look like its wearing stockings. Tonight, HARUKOW has somehow managed to squeeze herself into an ruffly pearl-white evening gown - actually the very same gown as what CHIKANE was wearing.]

HARUKOW: [Tears of gratitude in her eyes as she accepts the oscar] Mooou! MOOOOU!

CHIKANE: ... ... ... [Stares at the script and looks up on the stage incredulously.] What is Suzushirou-sempai doing in this scene?

MIKI: [Sighing] I'm afraid it is in her contract to be able to show up at least once in each chapter of FuMooFu's omake. This season is partially named in her's and Nanamoo's honor, after all.

[Camera pans back to show the blonde haired woman sitting beside MIKI with a put-out frown on her face.]

NANAMI: Goddamn it, I need a new agent.

* * *

OMAKE III: Return of the Mai-Hime Style Preview

[HIMEKO's voice can be heard doing the voice over for a series of fast paced clips edited together very confusingly and with deliberate misrepresentation so brazen the author should be ashamed of herself but totally doesn't HAHA.]

HIMEKO: [Looking at the script confusedly] ?

CHIKANE: What's wrong, Himeko?

HIMEKO: I'm a little confused, Chikane-chan. [Shares the script with CHIKANE. It's a bunch of blank pages stapled together.] There's nothing here!

CHIKANE: Hmm... I think it might be because the Author hasn't quite figured out what's going to happen in the next chapter yet, other than us going back to Fuuka, as suggested in the last scene of this Chapter.

HIMEKO: Oh! That's not very responsible of her! How are we supposed to do the preview, if we're not even sure what's going to happen yet?

CHIKANE: I guess you're just going to have to wing it?

HIMEKO: [Worriedly] Um... okay? [Looks at the camera and sheepishly rubs the back of her head, giving a bit of a helpless shrug] My apologies, but, um, I hope you will stay tuned for the next chapter of Revolutions FuMoooFu? Which will probably be about Chikane-chan and I going back to Fuuka and what everyone else has been doing in the last two years? I think? Maybe? [Looks back at CHIKANE helplessly] You think?

CHIKANE: [Shrugs helplessly] Probably?


	2. Chp 2 - The Dildo Incident

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMooFu

Revolutions FuMooFu – Chapter 2 - The Dildo Incident

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic (with cameos from other series)

By Jen-chan

October 20, 2014 and November 1, 2014.

Word Count: Approx 5,000

Please enjoy! There are more author's notes at the end and comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated!

* * *

The Hime and their loved ones did not generally get together - all together - for social occasions very often, partially because it was difficult to find a venue that could sit all of them comfortably. Still, they had good reason to try to get together on a regular basis, if not everyone then at least whoever could make it, for in a world where orphans, monsters and magical girls openly existed, it could only be called prudent to keep up with the news of what was going on.

It was Director Fumi who made the initial suggestion to meet monthly for lunch to catch up. Many of the monsters that still roamed the Earth from the Day the Skies Split were in Fuuka after all, and since they did statistically appear to be attracted to teen-aged girls, there were a few students over the last two years who had effectively become the next generation of Hime by 'adopting' a stray orphan, and thereby essentially turning the monsters into their Childs. Seeing the confusion that this had wrought on those young lives, Fumi, with Mashirou's encouragement, had found it necessary in her heart to take those girls under her wing. That was what had started the monthly lunch meeting that saw the introduction of several new 'Hime' into this sisterhood of older girls who intimately knew the challenges of having their love for their most important persons manifested and tied to a half mechanical, half magical house pet who may or may not be house trained, who may or may not even _fit_ in the house.

Most of the meetings were lively and friendly and took place on the second Tuesday of every month in the Director's rose garden with the gazebo and the fountain, and the Hime and their most important persons who chose to attend put aside any differences they may still have been harboring after all these years for the sake of civility.

No one would have guessed that Yuuki Nao would have become the most ardent supporter of these meetings - in attendance if not in words - for she had somehow, over the last two years, found herself showing quite a few girls "the ropes". Some of them came to her through the Church (which was ill equipped to help those few with the practical side of magical girl-hood) but more than one she had met at the dead end of a bad street in the wrong hour of the middle of the night. If asked, of course, Nao would deny having done any of this at all, and certainly not out of the goodness of her heart, but actions spoke louder than words, and no one believed the vehement but sputtering denials coming out of the redhead's mouth at all. Indeed, it was these good deeds that got Nao appointed to the Vice Presidency in her senior year at Fuuka when the various beneficiaries of her good work had let the student body President know of the impact she had had on their lives.

(Nao had refused, adamantly, for a long time, and then, eventually, with great protest, shown up to classes one day wearing the black blazer.)

Okuzaki Akira and Tokiha Takumi attended sometimes when their other club activities permitted them to, as did Munakata Shiho, though not very often.

Kikukawa Yukino, Suzushirou Haruka, Kuga Natsuki and Fujino Shizuru also regularly attended the lunches, as they were all at the nearby university. Tokiha Mai with Tate Yuuichi attended when they could but lunch was always busy at her restaurant and it was difficult for her to leave. Minagi Mikoto was a complete wild card who could disappear for weeks at a time and return without seeming to realize she'd been gone for any length of time at all, so it was difficult to count on her.

Representing the faculty, along with Director Fumi and former-Director Mashirou, Sugiura Midori could also be counted on to be in attendance, sometimes with Sagisawa Youko. Ishigami Yukariko and Higurashi Akane and were probably the only Hime to never attend, as one had retired to the countryside with her husband to raise their toddler, while the other had moved away with Kurauchi Kazuya to go to University elsewhere.

And though they were not Hime themselves, an invitation was always extended to Kurusugawa Himeko and Himemiya Chikane, once they had settled down in Fuuka.

Today's meeting was largely more social than educational, as there were no new Hime to introduce, and most everyone as listed above were in attendance with the exception of Shiho, Akira, Takumi and Youko.

They smiled and greeted each other as they came to their usual meeting place, before a completely unexpected and ridiculous thing happened that stopped everyone in their tracks.

The twelve women and one man all stared in flabbergasted bewilderment at the foreign object that was just sitting casually like it had every right to be there, beside the water fountain, on the ground, in the centre of the rose garden in the middle of Fuuka Academy during an otherwise completely normal Tuesday lunch period:

It was a bright, screaming pink, 10 inch, silicone dildo with a happy face (=D) printed on its tip.

* * *

Thirteen sets of eyes had all arranged themselves into a perfectly round circle around the dildo and was staring at it with expressions ranging from moral fury through bemused curiosity to complete confusion.

Naturally, it was Haruka who spoke first, gasping in outrage and stabbing a mighty finger in Shizuru's face, right between her amused eyes, such that Shizuru had to cross them to focus on what was hovering so indignantly in front of her so. "You deviant!" Haruka hollered, "how dare you bring such a disgusting thing onto Fuuka's school grounds! You're trying to pervert innocent, under-aged minds with your corruption, aren't you?!"

Shizuru stared back at Haruka and a vein of irritation almost throbbed at her temple (almost, but not quite, as Shizuru was very good at defending her person against such frivolous sight-gags). "And pray-tell, Suzushirou-san," she replied calmly but coolly, "why would you presume this item to belong to me?"

"Well duh!" Haruka insisted, rolling her eyes as though Shizuru was insulting her mighty intelligence. "This is a lesbian tool and you're the lesbian!" And then she blinked. "Well, unless it's Kuga-san's. Or Himemiya-san's. Or Kurusgawa-san's." And then Haruka looked at Fumi and Mashiro, and then she looked at Mai and Mikoto, and at this point, Haruka grabbed Yukino's shoulder, turned her best friend around, and whispered in Yukino's ear so loudly everyone could hear her, "oi, Yukino, is it just me, or do they outnumber us?"

Yukino just pinched the bridge of her nose like she had a very bad headache, and quietly turned both herself and Haruka around to face the rest of the group without dignifying her best friend's question with an answer.

By this point, Natsuki's cheeks had turned almost as bright pink as the dildo, as had Himeko's to almost the exact same shade, and they both cried, quite loudly, in that exact same horrified tone, "that's not mine!"

Chikane crossed her arms in front of her chest and the temperature around her dropped a few degrees as she assumed the position of Someone Who's Better Than You. "Honestly, Suzushirou-sempai, I am offended that you could articulate such a ridiculous presumption in this day and age that those of us who happen to prefer the same sex would all be sexual deviants who would bring as an inappropriate an item as this to a public place."

"Ara, I couldn't have said that better myself," Shizuru replied, nodding firmly. "Besides. Natsuki's is blue."

"AAAAH! Shut up shut up shut up!" Natsuki cried, deforming into a two foot tall chibi version of herself with tears of outraged horror spilling from the black-outlined white blots on her face that were her eyes, even as she throttled Shizuru's neck back and forth.

"Oowua! What is it? It looks like a pink banana!" At this point, Mikoto crouched down on all fours and put her nose up really close to the smiling happy face (=D) on the dildo to give it a sniff of investigation.

"AAAH! Stay away from that thing!" Mai cried, grabbing Mikoto's collar and bodily pulling the smaller girl away. "You don't know who that thing's been in!"

The black haired wild child sputtered and coughed wildly as she was inadvertently strangled, and she gave Mai a bit of a put out, wounded but mostly confused look.

Mai colored, and coughed. "I mean, you don't know where that thing's been!"

"Well..." Midori also squatted down and squinted her eyes at the thing, though she kept a further, more respectful distance than Mikoto had. "Whose ever it is, at least it looks _clean_..." And that observation did much to both improve the trauma the group was experiencing (as the dildo _was_ clean), but also simultaneously worsen it to the nth degree (but what if it _hadn't_ been?)

"Aaah, maybe it just... fell out of someone's bag or purse?" Fumi tried to be as helpful as possible, though she had several sweatdrops on the back of her head. She was standing behind Mashirou's wheel chair and the lavender haired girl was staring at the dildo with fascination in her green eyes as though she had never seen one before (and in 300+ years of existence, she really _hadn't_ had an opportunity to come across one before, which is probably for the best considering the fact that she _did_ look like an _11 year old_.)

"Riiiight." Nao rolled her eyes. She was trying to ignore the domestic violence that was happening just beside her, even as she wondered whether that particular shade of purple Shizuru was turning was a healthy one. "So how about, to spare anyone further embarrassment, we all just turn around and look away for, like 10 seconds, and whoever this thing belongs to can just pocket it and no one will think any worse of her." She looked at Tate. "Or him."

Tate sputtered. "What?! That's not _mine_!"

Everyone at this point stared at Nao silently, and she frowned, crossing her arms in front of her chest defensively. "What?"

"Nothing." Midori replied flatly, looking at her student. "That was a surprisingly mature and not-sarcastic suggestion, Nao-chan. Are you sure this thing doesn't belong to you?"

"Oh like HELL!" Nao snapped, her defensiveness quickly blossoming into out-and-out denial, her face as beet red as her hair. "It's probably YOURS, Sensei! Considering your man-friend doesn't even live in Fuuka! What have you gotta do to keep yourself from feeling all hot and bothered and lonely at night?!"

Now that blush leapt over to Midori's cheeks as she opened and closed her mouth a few times, but was so indignant she couldn't get any words to actually leave her lips.

But before everyone could erupt into a shouting match, Himeko quickly put her hands up in the universally recognized request for peace and said, "aaah, that actually is a very good idea, Nao-chan! How about we just do that? Come on, _please_?" She caught Chikane's eyes meaningfully.

For a moment, Chikane could only stare back at Himeko in completely incomprehension, before her eyes widened in surprise, but before she could say anything, Himeko had turned the both of them around, and soon, everyone else followed suit.

"10... 9... 8...7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2... and... 1."

With the countdown completed, everyone slowly turned back around to see if anyone had put the offending item away but to most everyone's surprise, the bright pink dildo remained right there in the middle of the group, smiling (=D) up at them in friendly greeting.

"..."

The thirteen pairs of eyes all looked at each other suspiciously, and Haruka said to Yukino in a loud whisper that everyone could hear again, "why is it still _there_?" to which Yukino replied, "maybe 10 seconds is not enough time? Do we need to do it again?"

But no one was willing to admit that they needed more time, since none of them were willing to admit that the dildo belonged to them in the first place.

Chikane looked up at Himeko who was not quite meeting her eyes, and who was still blushing brightly pink and who had also suspiciously buttoned her mouth tightly shut. Chikane's eyes widened incredulously for just a moment, before they returned to their normal, cool, almost haughty expression.

And that was when the blue-black haired girl knew it was time to play up her chicanery - that artful subterfuge that might as well have been her namesake, so she cleared her throat and said, "well, if no one is willing to step forward and claim this item, then perhaps it really _doesn't_ belong to anyone here. Perhaps an earlier group of friends who eat lunch here left it?"

"But this is on Mashirou-sama and mine's private grounds," Fumi said, her brow crinkled, "and this garden is usually off limit to students unless there is a special occasion, so that is unlikely. Was it even yet here when the first of us arrived?"

At this point, all eyes turned to Haruka - she who was always punctual. _Always._ Haruka was aghast at the insinuation in everyone's eyes. "What?! How dare you suggest that I, Suzushirou Haruka, could ever-"

"No one thinks it's yours." Nao said flatly. "Because you clearly have not been laid in years." She smirked. "But you arrived together with Yukino, did you not?"

And now everyone turned their attention onto the mousey brown-haired girl who's glasses suddenly steamed up. "T-that's absurd!" Yukino cried, fiddling with her glasses nervously. "I mean, why would I buy that model? It's only got a 3 month warranty, it isn't dishwasher safe and you can't even use it with a harness or..." she trailed off when everyone else's eyes got really, really big as they stared at her.

Even Haruka, who's mind appeared to be quite blown, could only blink dumbly at her best friend before remembering who she was and leaping to her friend's defense - bodily stepping in front of Yukino and stretching her arms to each side as she glared at everyone else with an intensity that could melt glass. "Yukino says it's not hers. So it isn't." She more or less snarled in challenge at anyone who would dare to.

At this point everyone else was starting to look quite uncomfortable, before Shizuru suggested (now that Natsuki had unhanded her). "Well... perhaps we can just... ignore the presence of this unfortunate item and... get on with lunch?"

So... they tried.

By that point, they were all mature young adults (well, except Mikoto) so they tried their damndest to be mature about it. They legitimately tried to just ignore this bright pink smiling (=D) sex toy that was sitting there in their midst, because no one had the guts to move it, and they tried to make small talk to each other, but everyone still had one eye on the dildo even as they tried to move on with their lunch, and it really didn't help at all when Mikoto disappeared and came back with a stick in her hands and started to poke at the thing.

"Aaah!" Mai groaned, "even if that thing doesn't belong to anyone, can someone grab a paper towel and throw it away or something? It is really distracting, and I don't think I can finish my lunch if I have to keep looking at that creepy thing!"

The dildo just continued to smile (=D).

"Eh? Throw it away?" Himeko seemed quite perturbed. "But that's so mean! It might not be fancy or top of the line or anything, but look at that happy (=D) face on it! Someone will miss it if it just gets thrown away! What about all the years of loyal service it's probably put in?"

At this point, everyone was staring at Himeko with expressions of O_o and O_O and even =_=. Except for Shizuru. Shizuru just raised an eyebrow, and rather than looking at Himeko, looked over at Chikane knowingly, causing the blue-black haired girl to suddenly and inexplicably blush. Hard.

Taking a moment to comprehend the expression on everyone else's face, Himeko suddenly realized what it sounded like coming out of her mouth, and she sweatdropped _mightily_, waving her arms in front of her in flat out denial.

"No! Oh, no! Really, it's not mine! Honestly! It's just! It's just...! Oh, just look at it!" And here Himeko motioned towards the smiling (=D) dildo as though it were exhibit 'A', and said, "can't you see? This... this dildo was beloved. It belonged to someone. It has... it has _tamashii_! It wouldn't be right to just... just throw it away. We should... we should bury it with proper ceremony as befit a beloved item."

And now everyone was looking at her like she really was crazy... except for Midori, who raised an eyebrow and regarded the tawny-haired woman in appraisal.

"Ah..." Midori said, a strange sort of fascination and epiphany in her voice. "_Tamashii..._ Spirit. Like when an inanimate item has been around for so long, or put in so many years of loyal service, it develops a soul." The history teacher was now looking at the pink dildo with what looked like new appreciation, and she couldn't help but somehow understand what the tawny-haired woman - who remembered every single one of her past lives - could possibly be trying to get at.

Even that silly, smirky, smiley face (=D) seemed suddenly to hide a deep, tragic sort of strength, as though this poor sex toy was trying to offer up the world a happy face when it was really secretly weeping inside at its own abandonment.

"Ah...!" And now, Fumi's eyes seemed to light with understanding too, as she looked down at the lavender haired girl in the wheel chair in front of her. "Sort of like... like my doll that you were able to cast your soul into, Mashirou-sama? Because I had loved it for so long?"

Mashirou craned her head up to look at Fumi, a very disturbed expression on her face. "Fumi-san, please never compare _me_ to _that-_" she pointed at the smiling (=D) sex toy, "_again._ But you are essentially correct."

And as everyone now stared at the pink dildo awkwardly, suddenly Tate took a deep breath and rubbed the back of his head. _'Okay,'_ the expression on his face seemed to say, _'here's where I shine. Here's where I man up, and do the gross thing all these girls can't bear to do.'_

"Alright," Tate finally said, reaching into his pocket and bringing out a handkerchief and advancing on the massive dildo he didn't feel inadequate beside no no nope not at all. "I'll get rid of it."

"No," Chikane interjected, unexpectedly (to all except maybe Himeko. And Shizuru). "I'll... I'll do it. If this... this _thing_ really _does_ have tamashii... then it wouldn't be right if you did it, Tate-sempai."

But even as she said this, and accepted the beige handkerchief that Himeko pulled out of a purse and handed her, a solemn expression in her eyes, the blue-black haired girl stared at the smiling (=D) sex toy like she really, really, _really_ did not relish the thought of having to touch it.

Soothing her skirt back modestly, Chikane reached out for the dildo, slowly, deliberately.

With every inch that her hand advanced closer and closer to the sex toy, time seemed to slow, as though it could _not_ believe that she was _actually_ going to go through with such a thing, and a loud, rhythmic pounding (similar to ones that usually happen during dramatic scenes in medical shows) began to thump in her ears.

And then, just as her quivering, trembling fingertips were _almost_ there, suddenly, Chikane was distracted from her very important and heroic duty by an unexpected jangling sound.

Blinking in confusion, Chikane looked over towards the noise, as did everyone else, and saw a familiar blue and silver dog approach them, a purple monkey-mouse riding on his head. The jangling had been his dog tags rattling together on his collar. Duran came up to the group and gave his mistress a bark of greeting, rubbing the top of his head against Natsuki's hand hanging slack at her side before his eyes perked up as he spied the bright pink dildo.

He casually walked over to it, sniffed it, and then picked it up in his mouth and walked away with it.

Chikane continued to stare at the spot on the ground where the smiling (=D) sex toy she had just been about to valiantly dispose of used to be, but now wasn't and blinked audibly.

"..."

Woodenly, she turned her head to follow Duran.

Everyone stared after the dog as it approached one of the rose bushes, dug a hole, dropped the dildo in, and then covered up its smiling (=D) face again with dirt shoveled over courtesy of his back legs.

Having properly buried the pink sex toy, Duran came back to where Chikane was still crouched on the ground, and gave her a big, happy, wet lick of appreciation on her cheek for helping him find his treasure.

"..."

Chikane's eyes got really, really, REALLY big as they swiveled to stare in disbelief at the hint of drool (from the mouth that had just carried that bright pink sex toy whom noone knew where had been) that was still left on her cheek, and she froze, statute still, her mind not quite able to quite process the indignity that her person had just suffered.

Once upon a time, a long time ago (during a time that never actually did happen), another puppy had given her a sloppy lick on the face in the middle of a rose garden, and she had laughed, happily and joyfully.

This... was not quite the same experience.

"Woof!" Duran gave another happy bark, and then left the garden as suddenly as he had arrived.

Everyone was stunned for the longest time, wordless, before Mai said, quite incredulously, "that thing belonged to _Duran_?"

"I knew that." Mikoto pouted, sitting on the ground and crossing her arms in front of her chest. "It smelled exactly like his drool. But Mai wouldn't let me say it."

(Meanwhile, as they were having this conversation, Himeko hurried to her semi-catatonic beloved's side, and crouched down to put a worried hand on Chikane's shoulder, murmuring gently, "Chikane-chan? Chikane-chan? Are you okay?")

Of course, no one believed that the dildo could actually belong to a dog (honestly, where would he have gotten the money to go purchase the thing, really?) so Natsuki suddenly found herself under the intense scrutiny of twelve pairs of eyes.

Shizuru pouted, hurt clearly evident in her crimson own. "Ara, Natsuki, why didn't you tell me about that one?"

The blue-black haired girl turned beet red. "S-SERIOUSLY!" Natsuki cried, sputtering wildly with sweatdrops aaall over the back of her head. "It's not mine! It really isn't! I have no idea why Duran would have that thing nor where he would have found it! Mine's blue!"

And then realizing what she had confirmed out loud, Natsuki could only cringe in defeat and bury her face in her hands.

"Uh huh." Mai stared at Natsuki, eyes half-lidded with an expression of acute disbelief on her face. "Sure it is, Natsuki, sure."

Glaring icily at her best friend, the blue-black haired girl looked ready to strangle someone. "IT IS! I mean that isn't-! Oh god!" Throwing her hands up in the air, she spun on her heel and walked away, muttering indignantly to herself. "Why does this sort of crap always happen to me?!"

"Aaah, I guess it doesn't matter who's it was, ultimately!" Himeko suddenly interrupted, clasping her hands in front of her chest in what sort of looked like a respectful prayer for the departed. (Chikane had, by now, managed to get back onto her feet, and was furiously rubbing at her cheek with Himeko's handkerchief like she hadn't quite recovered yet from her ordeal.) "It's now gone to a better place..."

"Hardly," Yukino muttered under her breath, a regretful expression on her face though no one really heard her. "Silicone isn't biodegradable. It would have been better to just recycle it. At least that way, maybe it could have been given a second chance at life as something else."

"Oh." Himeko considered this, before tapping a finger on her chin a bit guiltily. "Well, I suppose, if that's the case we could just dig it up and-"

"No." Chikane said quickly, giving her beloved a pleading look, even as she tugged on Himeko's sleeve. "Just... no."

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

So this chapter *probably* shouldn't be number 2, but I couldn't help myself. =P I figure, given the episodic nature of FuMoofu, it shouldn't matter too much if I start jumping around the timeline a little and just go with whatever muse-chan wants to do, right? But if it gets too hard to follow, let me know and I'll try to throw up a timeline or something.

This chapter is dedicated to guubear, mostly because she would be half horrified, and half pleased, that of all the ideas we've been sound-boarding together, *this* is the one that gets dedicated in her honor.

As another heads up, I've decided that I want to give NaNoWriMo a try this year using FuMoofu as the project, so I hope to have 50,000 words pounded out in the month, and will be releasing chapters through-out the month (as much as makes sense to, anyway). I'll be updating word count on livejournal and tumblr periodically if you want to track my progress and offer me any words of encouragement (or if you have any ideas for FuMooFu episodes you want to see, though I won't promise I'll actually do them!)

Cheers,

jen-chan

jen-chan-shaw. livejournal. com

jen-chan-shaw. tumblr. com

* * *

OMAKE I: Another Missed Reunion

SHIHO: [To AKANE] The author really doesn't like us, does she?

AKANE: [Sighing] No, I don't think she does. But did you really want to show up in a chapter called 'The Dildo Incident'?

SHIHO: Good point.

* * *

OMAKE II: So Who's Was It?

[In the dead of night, a black, shadowy ninja-like figure could be seen leaping over one of the rose-walls in FUMI &amp; MASHIROU's garden, stealthily sneaking her way through the paths towards the gazebo. She hides around the fountain, and turns her head this way and that for any witnesses before tip-toeing towards the bush that DURAN had buried the SMILING (=D) DILDO under. She quickly hoofs at the ground to uncover SMILING (=D) DILDO, grabs the sex toy with her teeth, and turns to flee. MASSIVE FLOODLIGHTS are suddenly turned on, all pointing at the rose bush and illuminating the NINJA.]

FUMI: [Wearing a nightgown and holding a flashlight as she pushes MASHIROU in the wheelchair] You were right, Mashirou-sama! The culprit did come back!

MASHIROU: Halt! Who goes there?! You can't hide! We've caught you red-handed!

[The MASSIVE FLOODLIGHTS have illuminated the form of a shocked and horrified HARUKOW, wearing an ill-fitting black ninja outfit she's clearly swiped from AKIRA over her hide. She drops the SMILING (=D) DILDO in shock from her mouth.]

MASHIROU: ...

FUMI: Perhaps that's red-hooved?

[Suddenly, HARUKA slides onto the scene wearing her ruffle-ly nightgown and a whole schwack-load of bows in her hair, and indignantly smashes HARUKOW into the stratosphere with a GIANT PAPER HALISEN.]

HARUKA: Oh like HELL you're pinning that one on me!

* * *

OMAKE III: Yay for the Mai-Hime Style Preview

[NAO's voice can be heard voicing over a series of fast paced clips edited together very confusingly and with deliberate misrepresentation so brazen the AUTHOR should be ashamed of HERSELF but totally isn't HAHA!]

NAO: Oh, why the hell are we even doing these if the author has no idea what's going to happen next?! This is clearly just an exercise in fluffing up the word count for this silly NaNoWriMo thing she's trying to do and is already cheating at on the first day!

NATSUKI: Well, if she has no idea what she's doing, then maybe she'll just go with whatever idea you give her?

NAO: Hmm... You might be onto something, Kuga. [NAO looks directly at the camera]. Stay tuned for the next chapter of Revolutions FuMooFu, in which I win the lottery and become a gazillionaire with hordes of scantily dressed men at my beck and call and for absolutely no reason at all, also have KUGA dressed in a slave-Leia outfit by my side.

NATSUKI: [Rolling eyes wildly] Oh, like THAT's really going to happen.

[The CAMERA coughs.]

NATSUKI: [Boggling] Wait, what?

[The CAMERA turns away from NATSUKI and NAO and tries to tiptoe away.]

NATSUKI: [Clearly perturbed tone in her voice] No, wait, come back! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ABOUT?! Hey, come back! COME BACK!


	3. Chp 3-1 - A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMooFu

Revolutions FuMooFu – A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts – Part I

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic (with cameos from other series)

October 19, 2014 - November 10, 2014

Total Arc Word Count: Approx 25,000

Part I Word Count: Approx 4,500

Please enjoy! There are more author's notes at the end and comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated!

* * *

Most mornings, Chikane woke up with the sun, and didn't need an alarm clock. Himeko once told her she thought this rightly unfair, and if Chikane's movements were enough to wake her, then the tawny-haired woman could always be counted on to try to entice the younger woman into staying in bed for just a while longer; she had a decent success rate too.

This morning however, it was not the sun that woke Chikane up, but rather, the distinct _lack_ of sun - her sun - her Himeko, sleeping in her arms - to be exact. In that funny space between awake and not, Chikane's fingers curled and uncurled slowly, as she dreamily expected to pull her beloved against her a little tighter for warmth. When her fingers simply met the mattress, Chikane's brow crinkled and she blurrily opened her eyes to confirm that, indeed, she was alone in their bed.

Frowning, Chikane pulled herself upright, the blankets falling away from her, even as she rubbed the last traces of sleep from her eyes.

"Himeko?" Chikane called softly, sleepily, even as her eyes spied where the other woman had gone right away.

Her tawny-haired beloved had pulled the wheeled chair that normally sat at the writing table in the corner of the room to the foot of the bed, and was sitting on it with her knees pulled up to her chest, her elbows resting on her knees, and her toes lightly griping the edge of the bed. She was wearing one of Chikane's collared shirts (the one that had been cast off so urgently the previous evening), and Chikane couldn't help but feel a bit warm and gooey on the inside seeing this; she loved it when Himeko wore her things.

Himeko's attention was turned to the window, a look of deep thought in her amethyst eyes, glimmering in the orange rays of the sunrise. Her mouth was mostly hidden by the palm of her hand, and it took Chikane a moment to realize the corners of her lover's lips were turned down into a frown.

Realizing this, Chikane could feel the hairs on the back of her neck all rise to attention that something wasn't quite right with this picture. She brushed away the last traces of sleepiness from her mind and replaced it with alertness instead. "What's wrong, Himeko?"

Still, Himeko did not seem to hear her, and it wasn't until Chikane had crawled towards the foot of the bed and settled her nude form down in front of her woman, close enough to reach out and touch her cheek, did Himeko finally give a start of surprise and swivel confused eyes over to catch Chikane's worried own.

"Chikane... sama...?" Himeko began slowly, as though she hadn't expected to find the young woman in front of her, in their bedroom, even though they'd collapsed in each other's arms the night before, utterly spent from the throes of passion (as was more usual the case than not when it came to their sleeping arrangements these days).

The unusual address prompted worry to blossom in Chikane's heart instantly. But before she could say anything, Himeko's eyes drifted down her body as though only then noticing her nude state of being, and those amethyst eyes quickly widened in surprise and embarrassment, even as a wicked blush spread across her cheeks. Himeko quickly looked away. "Chi-Chikane-sama! Thou hast misplaced thine clothing!"

Chikane's eyes widened as she pulled her outstretched arm back. "H-Himeko?" She said again, "Himeko, are you alright?" It took her a moment to process what her beloved was saying to her; it was old Japanese. Very old.

When Chikane tried to reach out to touch her beloved's face again, Himeko jerked back and out of reach, standing up so quickly she ended up pushing the wheeled chair she'd been sitting on away. This startled Himeko, as she hadn't expected her seat to roll away on her, and she stumbled. Chikane quickly reached out to steady her beloved by her arm, and Himeko gripped it back instinctively, but as soon as she realized she had done so, she gave another 'oh!' of scandal and turned away, blushing horridly. "P-please, Chikane-sama! Thou art naked!"

Chikane couldn't quite help it. Her tawny haired beloved's reaction stung her, deeply. More deeply than it should have. Doing her best to not let the hurt she was feeling show on her face, Chikane simply closed her open mouth, and continued to look quizzically at the other woman, even as a thousand thoughts raced through her mind, warring with one another for her attention.

Whatever could have happened to her beloved in the span of falling asleep in her arms the night before and waking up this morning?

Himeko covered her eyes with her hands. She peeked out from her fingers to see if Chikane had started to get dressed yet, and when she saw that Chikane was still unclothed, she gave another squeak of embarrassment and turned away again.

Taking a deep breath, Chikane looked around the room for something handy to throw over herself, and settled for the thin blanket on the bed. Pulling it to her chest, the fabric hid her modesty enough for her to briskly make her way past Himeko and to the ensuite bathroom where she exchanged the blanket for a proper terry bathrobe, white in color.

She belted the robe around her waist and poked her head back through the door to the bedroom. "Is this better, Himeko?"

By this point however, the tawny haired woman's attention had shifted away from Chikane entirely, and was now on herself.

Himeko had stretched her arms out in front of her, and she was staring at the sleeves of the collared shirt she was wearing as though she'd never seen such fabrics before. Her gaze then shifted to the body of the shirt - unbuttoned, her own naked body visible underneath - the middle of her breasts, tummy, belly button and groin.

Himeko's eyes widened in alarm as she pulled the shirt she wore further apart, and stared at the crisscross of fine lines and scars that adorned her lower torso. She started to tremble.

Looking up, Himeko stared at Chikane with open confusion, fear, and horror in her eyes. "Ch-Chikane-sama...!" She breathed, her voice tiny and clearly distraught. "What...? Whatever hast happened to me...?"

The look of horror on her beloved's face caused the same feeling to blossom in Chikane's own stomach - in empathy, in panic - and she quickly grabbed the other robe that hung inside the bathroom, and hurried back to Himeko's side, throwing the robe over the other woman's shoulders, and sitting her tawny-haired beloved down on the edge of the bed, hugging her close.

Himeko gripped the flaps of her robe tightly around herself, leaning into Chikane's embrace, and the younger woman found herself whispering soft, cooing sounds to her distraught lover. "It's okay, Himeko. You're alright. You're okay."

Himeko didn't say anything for a long time. She just continued to let herself be held in Chikane's arms, rocked soothingly back and forth. Eventually, the tawny-haired woman seemed to calm down, or at least, had stopped trembling. When finally she maneuvered herself out of Chikane's embrace to look up at the taller woman, her eyes were filled more with worry than out and out fear.

"Oh, Chikane-sama! I'm...! I'm so confused! What ist this place? And whatever hast happened to me? Mine mind! Tis muddled with the thickest of fogs!"

Chikane continued to rub Himeko's back as comfortingly as she could, but her brows remained crinkled with concern. "Himeko, I know this is going to be a strange question, but, what year is it?"

"Year? " The tawny haired woman's expression remained confused. "Why, tis the 2nd year of our Emperor Genro..." her voice trailed off, and Himeko's brow crinkled further as she voiced, unsurely, "... no... no it tisn't. Tis the 6th year of Tenri... or... is it? No...? It can't be, for other parts of mine memory insist that we have moved beyond the age of emperors...?"

The blue-black haired woman's frown deepened as she probed further. "Then what is your family name, Himeko? And what is mine, if you know it?"

"Why, I am of _thy _clan, Chikane-sama! Thine servant, thine handmaiden! Mine family is retainer to thine! I am Himeko of Clan... Clan..." and here, the tawny haired woman had to trail off as she blinked a few times, her mouth opening and closing a few times, with no words coming out. "...! I...! I can't _recall_! Mine mother and father, easily, their faces come to me, but there art so many faces! So many women who hath born me, so many fathers who hath sired me! They are all mine and I cannot recall who I am! I cannot...!"

And Himeko started to shake again, as her eyes glazed over, and it seemed like she was tumbling headlong down a very deep and frightening rabbit hole in her mind, until Chikane pulled her into a tight hug again, almost savagely pulling her back out of the dark maze she was on the cusp of falling into, fighting to ground Himeko in the here and now.

"Stay here, Himeko! Stay right here with me!" Chikane spoke with a command in her voice that brooked no argument, even as she shifted her grip to Himeko's face, and stared into Himeko's wide, wide amethyst eyes, capturing them fully with her blue-green own. "The year is 2006, or Heisei 18, and you are Kurusugawa Himeko! _My_ Himeko!"

But even though Chikane exuded a presence of command and rock-like steadiness as a comfort for her beloved, inside, she could feel her heart twist up into knots at the potential prospect of losing her most important person - no matter how figuratively.

For a moment, a long moment, Himeko could only stare back at Chikane, and Chikane prayed that her beloved could see the love and concern she knew had to be reflected in those blue-green depths and slowly, eventually, Himeko blinked once, and then twice, and then a small, shy smile came onto her face.

A great shutter rippled through Himeko's body as she calmed, and she slumped against the front of Chikane's body, drained. "Yes... yes, of course, Chikane-sama. Thou are correct. I am... I am Chikane-sama's Himeko. That tis the only fact of importance." And the reverence in the tawny haired woman's voice was enough to leave Chikane breathless and speechless, and she couldn't quite do anything when Himeko snuggled against her except hold her close.

They were still for a long time, lost in their thoughts, Himeko resting her head against Chikane's chest, while Chikane rested her chin on top of Himeko's hair, until the blue-black haired woman heard her beloved sigh.

"... but still. Tis quite a conundrum, our current predicament." Himeko finally murmured. "Mine head remains heavy, and mine memories are quite a jumble, as though leaves fallen from a tree, whose individual branches represented quite irreconcilable experiences. Whatever happened to wrought this, I know not..."

But Chikane did.

"It's because you can remember every life you've ever had," Chikane finally said, "that sometimes, you forget which one you're living in."

Himeko's eyes lifted in surprise and she gazed up at Chikane in wonderment. "Eh? Whatever doest thou mean, Chikane-sama?"

Chikane smiled sadly, not a small amount of guilt in that smile, even as she tenderly brushed a lock of Himeko's hair from her eyes. "This isn't the first time this has happened, Himeko." Chikane confessed softly. "Two years ago, you saved the world, as well as myself. But to do so, you had to remember some... some very important things you had forgotten. So you remembered, but, you went back a little too deeply, and you ended up remembering _everything_ \- all of your past lives, and even the times between them."

The tawny haired woman's eyes widened as Chikane said this.

The first time Himeko had told Chikane of this consequence from the Day the Skies Split, Chikane had been... worried. Alarmed, even, for she couldn't help but wonder what sort of detriment the memory of aeons of nothingness, akin, essentially, to sensory deprivation, punctuated by short bursts of sadness and tragedy, would have on the quality of Himeko's present life. But Himeko had only smiled and assured her (and then reassured her), that she found her memories a gift, for they served a very poignant evidence of the everlasting nature of their love for one another.

_'Think of it this way,' _her beloved had once said to her,_ 'now all of those Himekos have a chance to be with their Chikane-chans through me.' _

Remembering her beloved's wisdom, Chikane gave Himeko a comforting smile and then gently unhanded her. She walked over to the writing table in the corner of the room, and came back a moment later with a handsome leather journal, which she carefully handed to the tawny-haired woman before sitting down beside her again.

"A few months ago, you decided you wanted to document some of those lives, so you started to keep a journal, and would just jot down the things that came back to you. But sometimes, you'd get a little lost going down memory lane..."

Himeko stared at the journal in her lap, an incredulous expression on her face. Even as she ran her fingers over its top, she could feel the muscle memory in her right hand twinge a little, as though she'd spent many an hour with a pen at this journal. "How many times hath I become lost?" She breathed. "And how didst we cure me of this particular ailment in past iterations?"

Chikane shrugged a little helplessly. "I can't count the number of times you'd just start remembering something from a previous life, and then switch into that life, but as soon as someone pointed it out to you, you'd realize it right away, and come back. This is probably the first time you've gone so... so deeply, I'm afraid."

The tawny haired woman was silent as she considered this, still running her hand over the journal. She tapped her finger on it a few times in thought, before lifting it up and pointing at it even as she gazed back at the blue-black haired woman. "... and I hath documented mine lives in this journal? All of them?"

"I'm not sure, to be honest," Chikane confessed. "You've not yet shared it with me. You said you wanted to get a bit more down on paper first." In truth, it grated a little, not knowing what was in the journal, but Chikane knew her beloved would share it with her eventually.

Himeko considered this, before she giggled. "Ah. Tis probably because these pages are filled with thoughts of thee, Chikane-sama. T'would be most embarrassing to share those with thee so openly!"

And Chikane couldn't help but blush a little - Himeko's guess as to the contents of the journal were most likely correct. "Perhaps, if you perused the journal, it might help you to find your way back?"

It actually didn't seem like that long a shot, Chikane thought, as the act of reading through entry after entry might function similarly to climbing up a ladder, rung after rung, until Himeko reached the present day once more.

"Perhaps..." The tawny haired woman considered this as she gazed at the journal thoughtfully. Then her vision happened to flick up and fall upon the window. Interest piqued, she stood up, holding the journal to her chest. She walked to the window and peered at it curiously. She raised a hand up, and carefully touched the glass with a finger, drawing her hand back as though something surprised her, before touching the glass a little less tentatively, and then peering outside.

Chikane cocked her head to the side as she wondered what her beloved was thinking. Even from the bed, she could tell there was nothing unusual or interesting outside. There were only a couple of early risers outside on the street; none of the shops outside had opened yet, including Mai's.

Still, it was a peaceful scene, tranquil and made pretty by the glow of the just risen sun.

"Ist the world beyond this looking glass the one we saved, Chikane-sama?" Himeko breathed, a hint of wonderment in her words, as she continued to gaze outside.

Chikane's eyes widened as she considered this, and then she couldn't help but look a little sheepish. "It's the world _you_ saved, Himeko." She couldn't quite add the final two words of that sentence - _from me_.

Chikane could tell Himeko was smiling, though the tawny-haired woman was still faced away from her and looking outside. She shook her head lightly. "No, tis the world _we_ saved, Chikane-sama. From Orochi. Again and again."

And Chikane opened and closed her mouth a few times, but couldn't argue with the truth of that.

Himeko turned around to gaze at Chikane, and the young woman was dumbstruck by the vision of absolute beauty in front of her that was Himeko smiling fondly while the soft glow of the morning sun made a gentle halo of her hair, golden and angelic.

"May I see it?"

Chikane stared at Himeko for a moment, stunned by Himeko's angelic smile, and the simple, heartfelt joy and excitement in those sparkling amethyst eyes, and felt a whole bunch of butterflies flap their wings in her tummy. She got up and joined Himeko at the window, placing a small, fond hand on the small of Himeko's back, delighting in the warmth under her hand.

"Of course."

How could she refuse?

* * *

The first obstacle... was indoor plumbing.

Himeko stared in wide-eyed wonder at the bathroom, and to be fair, it certainly was a very fancy, modern bathroom worthy of amazement (featuring such luxuries among others as twin sinks resting atop white granite, a soaker tub carved out of marble with jet sprays, and a massive two person showering area with built-in stone bench seating and multiple nozzles), but it was the concept of the very _existence_ of such a room, and placing it right off of the area where one slept that seemed to most boggle the time-displaced woman.

She stared at the toilet in absolute bafflement and then looked back up at Chikane, thoroughly perplexed, as she pointed at it. "Right here?" She echoed.

Chikane almost sweatdropped. Almost. "Yes, right there."

Himeko was horrified. She continued to stare at the porcelain fixture with the built in seat like she couldn't quite believe such a thing could exist. Very cautiously, she pushed down on the lever that Chikane had indicated to her earlier, and gave a squeak of surprise when the throne gave an angry roar and summoned a mini watery cyclone in its bowl.

The tawny-haired woman stared in fascination in this display, and then, with an expression of absolute delight on her face, pushed a couple more of the buttons on the porcelain well. One of them prompted a short musical interlude to play (london bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down), while the other one sent a spray of water flying out of the toilet bowl that splashed all over Himeko's face and down the front of her robe.

While Himeko gave a shriek of dismay at the attack, Chikane tried very, very, _very_ hard not to laugh. She mostly succeeded. Mostly. "That would be the bidet function, and to the best of my knowledge, you don't normally make use of it." She handed Himeko a towel which the tawny-haired woman accepted gratefully, even as she gave the porcelain fixture a look of misgiving like she was never going to trust another one in her life.

After that bit of business, they got through the rest of their morning ablutions, and it was when Chikane had sat Himeko down at her vanity to help her with her with hair and makeup did the tawny-haired woman peer into her visage in the mirror and made her next unexpected discovery.

Himeko stared at her reflection for a long time, turning her head this way and that, while Chikane looked amused. "Have mirrors not yet been invented?" She asked.

"They have," the tawny haired woman confirmed, still a confused expression on her face, "though I daresay the size, polish and finery of this instrument far exceeds that which even ladies of the court might access." Turning her attention away from the mirror, Himeko looked at Chikane a bit worriedly and said, "no, tis not the mirror itself which puzzles me, but rather mine reflection within. Pray tell, Chikane-sama, how many winters hath this body seen? "

Chikane blinked. And then she gave Himeko a small smile. "You turned 34 last month, Himeko."

The tawny haired woman's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "34!" She gasped. "Why, that's positively ancient!" She frowned in confusion. "And you say that neither of us have children? Or are wed?"

Chikane's eyebrows crinkled ever so slightly before she could stop herself, and the tawny-haired woman saw the expression and completely misinterpreted it.

"Ah, of course," she murmured, touching her abdomen lightly, remembering the scars. "A poor bride would I make, barren as I am, but surely Chikane-sama does not suffer the same misfortune as I?"

Something distraught flashed through Chikane's eyes, and she frowned, deeply. Putting the hairbrush down on the vanity, Chikane knelt down beside Himeko, and gently, but firmly took her hands. She looked up at the older (but currently younger) woman square in the eyes, and Himeko could see utmost seriousness in those blue-green depths. "Himeko, I have you. You have me. Please don't _ever_ call that _misfortune_."

The time-displaced woman was stunned by this declaration, and could only stare at the beautiful young woman kneeling beside her, a strange concoction of a variety of emotions she could not name whirling about inside her, causing her heart to pound loudly in her chest.

_It was preposterous!_ Himeko could not help but think, that Chikane-sama, her dear, dear Chikane-sama, would eschew conventional happiness - marriage, children, family - and claim companionship with a lowly maid as its equivalent...?!

Seeing the complicated expression on Himeko's face, Chikane's own expression grew a little regretful, and she got up again, picking up the hairbrush and starting to comb through Himeko's hair. "I'm sorry," Chikane said softly. "You may not have known, but Himeko, _my_ Himeko, certainly does - that we love each other very much."

For a moment, Himeko couldn't quite meet the other woman's eyes, feeling a great guilt that her thoughtless words had hurt her Chikane-sama so, but after a little while, she worked up the courage to try to catch Chikane's eyes in the mirror, and when she did, she gave the young woman a shy smile through the mirror. "Forgive me, Chikane-sama, for in my time, we are but girls of 16, and I am but thy simple hand maiden, unschooled in the arts of conversation, so mine tongue is clumsy. But please know, that... that it pleases me greatly to know of thy affection for thine Himeko." And then she turned her eyes away, and her voice got quiet, though was still audible. "...It is good to know that some things never change."

Chikane stopped brushing Himeko's hair for a moment, and Himeko could tell that her mistress was taken aback by the boldness of her words. Then Chikane's gaze softened into one of fondness, and she gave the tawny-haired time-displaced woman a small, shy smile, one that Himeko returned with equally warmth.

The rest of the makeup session went largely without incident, with Himeko being appreciative of Chikane's efforts, although she did give a put out sigh and say, at one point, "oh honestly, it'isn't fair! That Chikane-sama still looks like a wisp of a girl whilst crowsfeet line mine own eyes...!"

It wasn't until Himeko said this that Chikane had a look of dawning on her face.

"... Actually, Himeko," Chikane said slowly, "we're not the same age. I'm 16 years younger than you are."

The look Himeko gave her was decidedly incredulous. "Ex_cuse_ me?!"

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

So I now realize that slice-of-life should be consumed in bite-sized pieces rather than in one massive 26,000+ word chapter (which I guess would no longer qualify as 'slice' and would be more like whole-cake-of-life?) because the lack of a big driving conflict just makes a longer offering come off as _dull_. I came to the realization while writing this chapter, and found myself going back to add sub headings (Part I, Part II, etc), to give myself a break.

(I guess that's why episodes of Azumanga weren't really full 22 minute offerings but rather several 5 minute offerings bundled together, eh?)

Keeping this in mind, I've decided to name this arc, "A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts", and will be releasing the individual parts in short order – probably one every two days or so, in an effort to help slice this thing up into more easily consumable parts without causing too much indigestion, so please bear with me if you find these chapters too short for your liking.

Alternatively, you could just wait the week and a half and get the whole thing all in one go. :)

Also: yay for toilet humour. My first experience with a Japanese toilet was in an airport, and I will never forget how much smarter and more polite this bowl was compared _me_ \- much less compared to the throne at home.

This story arc is dedicated to georgiapilu. Thank you for all your encouragement over all these years across so many different social media platforms, G! :)

Cheers,

jen-chan

jen-chan-shaw. livejournal. com

jen-chan-shaw. tumblr. com

* * *

OMAKE I: Unpleasant Morning Revelations

[CHIKANE wakes up and finds HIMEKO not beside her.]

CHIKANE: Himeko? [Gets up and rubs her eyes] Where are you?

HIMEKO: [Sitting on the edge of the bed lost in thought]

CHIKANE: [Crawls over to HIMEKO, naked, and waves a hand in front of her] Himeko?

HIMEKO: [Snaps out of it] Oh! Chikane-sama! [Blinks] Why art thou naked? And in bed with a heifer?

CHIKANE: [Blinks] What? [Turns around and sees that HARUKOW is lying asleep in the bed where HIMEKO should have been.]

HARUKOW: [SNORING SOFTLY] Mou-mou-mou-mou-mou-mou... [Inhales] Mou-mou-mou-mou-mou-mou...

CHIKANE: [Hairs sticking out of her head at weird tangents] ... ... ...

HIMEKO: [Sweatdropping] Tis alright! I shall grant thee some privacy! [Quickly runs off]

CHIKANE: [Reaching out for the door. Voice is very squeaky and panicky] No wait it's not what you think-! [HIMEKO has already left the room and shut the door behind her.]


	4. Chp 3-2 - A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMooFu

Revolutions FuMooFu – A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts – Part II

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic (with cameos from other series)

October 19, 2014 - November 10, 2014

Total Arc Word Count: Approx 25,000

Part II Word Count: Approx 4,600

Please enjoy! There are more author's notes at the end and comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated!

* * *

Chikane called Director Fumi to let her know more-or-less what had happened, and luckily, for all that the Director seemed to delight in scoring petty inconveniences against the blue-black haired student, in times of actual emergency, she was quite understanding and even accommodating.

Chikane wasn't sure whether it was luck or something else that today, a Saturday, was the day of the annual Fuuka Academy Campus Wide Cultural Festival, which meant that neither she nor Himeko had any class duties; the students were running the show today, with every class, club and circle showcasing some sort of show or booth or activity, so Himeko didn't actually have to be at school (though most of her art students would have been crestfallen that their favorite instructor would skip out on the displays they'd been working on for the last few weeks).

Of course, after learning what a cultural festival was (as well as what a _school _was) from Chikane, Himeko was so enamored with the idea that the blue-black haired student found herself unable to deny her lover the joy of attending one. They had, of course, been planning on seeing the festival together, before Himeko had woke up several hundred years in the past (or maybe even older; Chikane still hadn't been able to exactly place which era Himeko was currently re-living, and she suspected this might have been because her lover was actually mixing up several lifetimes together).

By the time they were ready to leave their flat, it was well into the morning, and the shops on the street were starting to fill with people.

As the elevator doors opened into the lobby of their building, Himeko tried not to be too startled by the fact that the box she had entered rumbled to life and the floor beneath her feet descended of its own accord, though she did grip Chikane's hand rather tightly. Stepping out into the lobby, the manager at the concierge desk bid them a good morning, and complimented Himeko on her pale green kimono with sakura motif.

"T-thank you," Himeko replied, blushing a little, unused to the finery that adorned her, "thou are too kind." The concierge sweatdropped a little bit at the archaic language, but otherwise said nothing.

Chikane smiled faintly feeling pleased that they had ultimately decided to dress Himeko in the kimono, rather than normal clothing. Her time displaced lover had been quite perturbed and uncomfortable with the idea that normal garb in this day and age showed so much skin (legs and knees, wrists, arms, elbows, why even _shoulders_! How scandalous!) and had been very relieved to spy a familiar item of clothing at the back of their closet. At first, Himeko had been unable to fathom that such a fine item could actually belong to her; such an article had to be her Chikane-sama's! But Chikane had let her know that the item indeed was hers - a gift from her primary photography client, Daidouji Tomoyo (whatever 'photography' was).

(Incidentally, Himeko had been quite shocked when Chikane had put on her school uniform - Fuuka's famous golden blazer over top of a white collared shirt and a short dark grey pleated skirt that ended four inches above her knees. "Do young women of good breeding really wear their skirts so short?" She had asked Chikane, and the young woman had decided not to confuse the issue by mentioning that _technically_, her skirt was a little shorter than Fuuka regulation allowed, but their current Executive Director was no Suzushirou Haruka when it came to the matter.)

They walked the length of the lobby slowly, Chikane leading the way and holding the other woman's hand while Himeko marveled at the crystal chandelier and the lush rugs and carpeting and the leather upholstered sofas, until they reached the rotating door at the front of their building.

Chikane smiled encouragingly at Himeko. "Are you ready?" She asked softly.

Himeko had a little bit of apprehension in her eyes, but she ultimately returned Chikane's smile and nodded. "Un!"

Carefully making their way out of the rotating door (which was a little dangerous for the notoriously clumsy photographer on a normal day, much less on a day when she thought the contraption was some sort of medieval spinning torture chamber), they made their way out onto the street of their apartment building, and into the noise and bustle of downtown Fuuka.

Himeko's amethyst eyes widened and her jaw dropped open in overwhelming delight as she took in the dizzying array of sights and sounds and smells, with skyscrapers, office and apartment buildings towering all around her, streets full of noisy people and vehicles, and the ever present fumes of humanity and technology all along the street that stretched left and right as far as the eye could see.

"Oh my goodness!" Himeko breathed, as she watched a taxi cab drive past her.

"Are you alright, Himeko?" Chikane asked softly, giving Himeko's hand a reassuring squeeze. "Is it too much?"

The wide, breathless smile on Himeko's face was filled with far too much unadulterated joy and delight for her to be feeling anything else but. "Oh, this is marvelous, Chikane-sama!" She gasped. She pointed at the next thing that drove past - a silver bus with an advertisement for a movie on one side. "Art those... art those one of those 'vehicles' thou spokest of this morning?"

"It is."

"Tis gigantic in statue! I had no idea of the size!"

"That one is called a bus," Chikane advised. "It's a public means of transportation, so it must be larger to fit more people in it." She smiled. "We can get on one afterwards, if you would like? For now, Mai-san's restaurant is just down the street, so we can walk there."

"Mai-san?" Himeko echoed, her face still full of delight. "Does thou speakest of mine eldest sibling?"

Chikane smiled faintly. That the souls of their friends and loved ones in this lifetime would have intertwined with their own in lives previous was a concept she knew to be possible, and that actually gave her great comfort. "Perhaps, in your time. Here, Tokiha Mai is your cousin, and you fronted her the money to start a restaurant after she graduated from high school last year."

"Oh!" Himeko seemed a little confused. "A restaurant? Does this make mine cousin... a... merchant?"

The blue-black haired young woman nodded. "It does, and it is a well respected profession in this day and age, especially for an establishment to be as successful as Mai-san's has become so quickly after opening, and considering how young she is."

They made their way down the street, moving much more slowly than they normally would have, as Himeko stopped every few steps to marvel at one modern convenience or another, which Chikane was more than happy to indulge, though, by their 6th vending machine, she was starting to run out of space in her purse for more plastic bottled drinks.

They made it to _Mai's_ during that short lull between breakfast and lunch, and the door chimed a familiar welcome as Chikane and Himeko entered.

"Irrashaimase," Takumi called, coming out of the kitchen wearing a long, black apron over top of a dark collared shirt and blue-jeans. "Ah! Good morning, Chikane-san, Himeko-san." His eyes widened when he saw how dressed up Himeko was, and he looked momentarily confused for a moment, before smiling politely. "You look lovely today, Himeko-san."

"Good morning, Takumi-kun." Chikane greeted, though she kept one eye on Himeko the entire time.

The tawny haired woman's mouth had dropped open, and there were tears of what seemed like joy and disbelief in her eyes as she took in the sight of the high school student.

"Takumi-chan!" Himeko cried, her kimono restricting her movements to dainty steps as she shuffled to him, stopping just shy in front of him and cupping his face in her hands. "Oh, how thee hath grown! Thou hast become such a fine and handsome young man! Onee-sama must be so pleased and proud!"

Sweatdrops appeared on the back of Takumi's head as he looked at Himeko like she had sprouted another head. "Huh?"

"Hey, is that Chikane-san and Himeko?" Mai's voice could be heard from the kitchen just before the redhead herself popped her head out and spied her guests. She wore a chef's uniform under her black apron, and was holding onto a ladle in one hand. "Ah, so it is! Good morning! Do you want the usual?"

And now Himeko saw Mai and she gave another gasp of delight, unhanding Takumi to shuffle over to Mai, throwing her arms around the other woman in a hug. "Onee-sama! Look at thee! Thine son Takumi is a man grown and yet, thou appears un-aged a day since thine nuptials!"

"? ? ?" Mai shot Chikane an absolutely bewildered look over Himeko's shoulder, even as she awkwardly returned the tawny-haired woman's embrace with one arm.

Chikane rubbed the back of her head a little sheepishly. "My apologies for the confusion, Mai-san, but it appears that Himeko might have ventured down memory lane a little too deeply..."

Eventually the Tokihas sat their cousin and her lover down in the booth they normally got when they frequented the restaurant, and Chikane let them know what had happened while Takumi fetched some tea and coffee.

"Oh wow," Mai breathed, gazing at Himeko with a look of amazement on her face. "So how are you planning on getting back to normal, Himeko-san?"

Chikane and Himeko shared a helpless look with each other, before the tawny-haired woman sort of shrugged and said, "our hope is that perhaps if I were to re-familiarized mineself with the routine of this life, then mayhaps I would come back to myself without further action required."

"Hmm. That's not necessarily a bad plan," Takumi said thoughtfully. "Since, when this sort of thing happens normally, you just sort of go back to normal by yourself anyway." He smiled a little sardonically. "It's probably too bad that this happened during the cultural festival. Had this been a normal school day, maybe the routine of class would have snapped you back by first period."

"Mayhaps," Himeko nodded agreeably. "But mayhaps not. And truth be told, I am rather thankful, for if I am able to experience even a tenth of the festivities that Chikane-sama has described to me, then the day promises to be most memorable indeed!"

Mai chuckled. "Most cultural festivals are. I had a blast with the cafe we did last year." She sighed and gave her brother an apologetic look. "I'm sorry I won't be able to attend yours until Kino-san comes in for the afternoon, Takumi. Make sure you save me a taiyaki?"

The younger Tokiha nodded _yes of course _to his older sibling, before she got up and headed back to the kitchen, saying over her shoulder, "now as for bringing back Himeko-san's memory, how about I do my part, and I bring you the usual weekend breakfast order?" Mai suggested.

"That sounds marvelous," Chikane said, smiling appreciatively. "Thank you, Mai-san."

So a short while later, Mai returned with the western style breakfasts she knew the two women liked - sunny-side up eggs and toast with coffee for Chikane, and Belgium styled waffles with fruit and whipped cream and milk tea for Himeko.

"Oh! Whatever tis this concoction? It smells absolutely divine!" Himeko smiled, absolutely delighting in the pretty presentation of her breakfast, though the knife and fork that came with the meal confused her somewhat. She picked both items up in her fists awkwardly, until she saw how Chikane was handling her utensils, and then adjusted her own hold on the items sheepishly.

Himeko's eyes widened as she took her first bite, and then all manner of glimmering stars and shiny flowers and happy background art began to float in the air behind her. "Oh, this is _heavenly_!" She declared.

And Chikane couldn't help but smile, finding her beloved's joy infectious.

After breakfast, Chikane asked Himeko if she wanted to walk to campus to help them work off the unusually heavy breakfast, and the tawny-haired woman enthusiastically agreed - she didn't quite feel up to task with the prospect of boarding a 'bus' just quite yet. They left Mai's and wandered languidly down the street some more, and Chikane took the time to explain anything that seemed to catch Himeko's attention - which was a _lot_ of things, including but not limited to lamp posts, telephone wires and sewer covers.

Eventually, campus came into view, and Himeko boggled at the sight. Chikane herself was also quite impressed, as all manner of signs, balloons, and decorations had been festooned all about campus, from the primary school all the way through to the university, and the almost frenetic energy from the students and their visitors was almost palpable in the air.

The main avenue leading up to the high school and middle school building had been staked out by most of the athletics clubs as prime real-estate, for all visitors to Fuuka had to come down this walkway; a lot of the sports clubs derived the bulk of their annual budgets from the money they raised during the cultural festival after all, so it wasn't so surprising that so many of them would have chosen to run the always popular carnival food stalls as their entry into the cultural festival.

Chikane almost regretted getting breakfast with Himeko at _Mai's_ first, as this had already left them stuffed to the gills, and they couldn't really indulge in very many tasty treats.

They quickly spied a familiar, small girl drooling at the yakisoba stand, with short spiky black hair and twin braids hanging down over her ears. She was crouched down at the serving table where multiple plates of cooked noodle rested, gripping the edge of the table excitedly with eyes wide and glimmering with unshed tears of appreciation for the delicious, delicious food while a hint of drool dripped from the corner of her mouth. A small purple-grey monkey mouse was perched on top of Mikoto's head, wearing the exact same expression on her face.

Chikane smiled fondly as she approached the two. "Good morning, Mikoto, Chu-Chu." She scratched the top of Chu-Chu's head with one finger, but her former pet was so enamored with the food stall, she didn't react. "Did you want some yakisoba?"

Mikoto nodded her head rigorously. "Un! Un! Could you get some for me, Hime? Please?"

The blue-black haired young woman smiled. "Of course," she agreed, buying several orders of noodle from the swim team captain, who sighed in exasperation, grumbling that the black-haired wild child was going to eat them out of stock before noon.

A ginormous plate of yakisoba soon arrived and Mikoto devoured it wholeheartedly, with quite a few noodles going down Chu-Chu's gullet.

"That was delicious!" Mikoto declared as she slurped up the last of the noodles happily. "Thanks, Hime!" It wasn't until she had finished her food that she even saw Himeko beside Chikane, and she boggled a bit, grinning a big, wide, happy smile. "Uwaaah! You look pretty, Himeko!" She grinned.

Himeko, who had been gazing at Mikoto in concentration, as though trying to place her, blinked and then smiled. "Aaah, mine thanks for the compliment, um-" but even before she could finish, Mikoto had spied another food stall and had rushed off towards it eagerly.

Himeko chuckled at the wild child's antics as she stepped up beside Chikane. "And who, pray tell, might that have been, Chikane-sama?"

"Minagi Mikoto," Chikane replied, her smile growing a little sad, as she gave Himeko a gentle look. "I confess that I am very glad to see that she is here today."

Himeko was able to catch the hint of melancholy in Chikane's voice as she spoke of the small girl, and gave her a quizzical look, but something in the blue-black haired young woman's expression told her that perhaps now was not the best time to get into it. So instead, she gazed after the black-haired wild child, and said, softly, "I am glad to see her alive and well in this life."

Chikane quirked an eyebrow at Himeko, and the tawny haired woman went on to explain, "in my time, I recognize her to be the young daughter of a servant who was quite close with Onee-sama in her youth. She died of illness during a harsh winter; it broke Onee-sama's heart."

The blue-black haired girl was saddened to learn of this, though there really was not much one could do about the tragedies of a life, long past.

They were a little quiet after that, as they left the swim team yakisoba stand to continue their walk through the food stalls. At some point, Chikane realized that the expression on her face must have been pensive, as it always became when she dwelt on the destiny of the black haired wild child, because Himeko had seen fit to gently slip her hand inside Chikane's own, and gave it a comforting squeeze.

(Unbeknownst to either Chikane and Himeko, the captain of the swim team saw their hand-holding as they had left his booth, and boggled a bit. While the whole school more or less knew about the relationship between the popular high school senior and the substitute middle school art teacher, the two women were generally not prone to public displays of affection while on campus grounds where people could see them, which made any lapse from this norm all the more deliciously scandalous.)

Eventually, they made their way through the food stalls, which then gave way to the display booths of the various athletics clubs proper - the areas which showed off the accomplishments of and information about each team in an attempt to recruit more members.

All of the big teams were there - soccer, baseball, track &amp; field, as well as, curiously, one new entry, which wasn't a high school athletics club at all, but actually the booth for Fuuka University's Magical Girl Practicum Program with Mahoraba Prefecture's Police Force.

Chikane couldn't help but smile when she spied her former roommate manning the table, with her Child at her side.

Natsuki was actually wearing a police cadet's uniform, and Duran was at heel, in his Child-mode (as opposed to his animal-mode), the canons that were his hind-legs neatly polished to a shine. Beside Natsuki was a younger student with blonde hair twisted into curls around her shoulders, wearing Fuuka Academy's middle school uniform. Chikane recognized her to be Tomoe Mami - one of a handful of girls who had inadvertently adopted an Orphan and turned it into her Child after the Day the Skies Split. Indeed, Mami's child, a small doll-like creature whom Chikane remembered was called Bebe, was seated on the ground beside Duran, trying to look as reputable as the dog-like Child.

Currently, Natsuki was speaking to someone who looked like he could have been a parent of a Fuuka Academy student, and was giving the man an information pamphlet. As Chikane and Himeko approached, their conversation ended, and Natsuki gave Chikane a smile. "Hey, morning." She greeted, smiling.

"Good morning, Natsuki-sempai. You are very dashing in uniform." Chikane's eyes smiled with mirth. "Has Shizuru-sempai seen you yet?"

The sudden and inexplicable blush that came to Natsuki's cheeks told Chikane that Shizuru had indeed. Natsuki rubbed the back of her head awkwardly. "Aaah yeah, she has. The uniform was Souma-san's idea. He thought it might help to lend the booth some legitimacy."

"And why is the booth in the high school area, rather than the university area?" Chikane asked, noticing the inconsistency.

"Because for whatever reason," Mami piped up, stepping forward to hand Chikane a pamphlet as though she'd rehearsed for this very question, "Orphans seem to statistically prefer girls in their teens, so we though this booth would be more useful here rather than over at Fuuka U."

Chikane looked down at the pamphlet that had been handed to her. It was a photocopied printout that had clearly been made by students rather than professionals which read: _'What To Do If A Monster Is Trying To Follow You Home And Keeps Leaving Dead Birds and Other Small Animals On Your Doorstep.'_

"Ah, I see." The blue black haired young woman smiled at her underclassman. "I take it you helped to create this pamphlet, Tomoe-san?"

Mami smiled, apparently pleased to be known by one of the school's most popular celebrities. "I did." She looked over at Natsuki and hints of a blush colored her cheeks. "Bebe and I have got a few more years before we can actually help anyone out in any real capacity, but we wanted to be able to do _something_ in the meanwhile. Isn't that right, Bebe?" At the mention of her name, the small doll-like Child looked up at Mami and leapt onto her shoulder from the ground via Duran's head, nuzzling against Mami's cheek.

Natsuki smirked at the younger girl. "You sure you can wait til University? Nao tells me she keeps seeing you and Bebe in parts of town a good girl has no business in being."

Mami simply smiled coyly. "Then what business does Vice President Yuuki herself have in being in such places?"

"Who'd consider Nao a good girl?"

The blue-black haired university student exchanged a knowing glance and smile with the middle school student. At that point, someone else had come up to the booth and Mami went to answer their questions, leaving Natsuki to chat with Chikane and Himeko.

For her part, Himeko had crouched down and was marveling at Duran. "How wonderful thou art!" She breathed, offering her hand out, which Duran sniffed and licked. "What manner of animal husbandry could produce a hound as singular as thee?"

Natsuki quirked an eyebrow, and Chikane smiled weakly. A short explanation later, and Natsuki understood what had happened.

"Oh wow..." Natsuki regarded Himeko with wide eyes, as the tawny-haired woman straightened, and smiled politely at her. "From at least 300 years ago...?" She blinked, and then grinned, "hey, Himeko, did you know who I was, back then?"

Himeko cocked her head to the side as she regarded Natsuki for a moment, trying to place her. Her eyes widened as she seemed to come to a conclusion before her brow knitted in consternation: _nooo,_ her face seemed to say, _that cannot be! _"Um, may I?" Himeko asked, carefully reaching out and taking a lock of Natsuki's hair. She angled that lock of hair in front of Natsuki's face by her upper lip as some sort of surrogate mustache before her eyes widened and she gave a gasp.

Quickly releasing Natsuki's lock of hair, Himeko scrambled backwards and dropped to the ground, touching her forehead to the concrete in prostration. "F-Forgive mine impudence, my lord Natsuki-sama! I-I recognized thee not though thy resemblance to thine counterpart in mine time is unmistakable!"

Natsuki sweatdropped and hastily bent to pull Himeko back to her feet with Chikane. The tawny-haired woman shied away from Natsuki to hide behind Chikane fearfully. "Hey, what's this all about?" Natsuki tried to laugh, though a few hairs stuck out of her head at strange tangents. "What am I, the boogey-man?"

Himeko shook her head emphatically. "Th-Thou art Chikane-sama's honored father, Natsuki-sama!"

Both blue-black haired young women boggled. Well, Natsuki boggled; Chikane just looked surprised. "Father?" They echoed in unison.

Himeko nodded vigorously, clearly alarmed to be speaking personally to an individual she considered to be her better. "Y-Yes!"

Both blue-black haired young women gave each other weirded-out looks before they broke into amused smiles.

"That's hilarious!" Natsuki laughed, pointing at her nose. "Hey, Chikane, people always say we look alike, but seriously? Me? Your father?"

Chikane shrugged, amused but not surprised; in the life furthest into the past that she could recall, Natsuki had been her relative as well; a sister, in that lifetime. "As I have said before, Natsuki-sempai, the same souls do tend to find each other again and again..."

More people were arriving at Natsuki's booth (including a very tired looking high school student with what looked like a lovesick crocodile waddling behind her), and the university student had to go back to her duties, signalling to the high school student and the art teacher that they should probably see more of the festival.

"Is this where I demand that you bring Chikane home at a decent hour?" Natsuki teased, as she gave her friends a wave goodbye.

Chikane winked back. "I am fairly certain Shizuru-sempai would not want me anywhere close to the vicinity of your home tonight."

Natsuki blushed, but did not deny the accuracy of Chikane's assessment.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

I remember getting the comment from Jet back in Revolutions how strange it was to think of Chikane as anyone's daughter, but that it could make sense if Chikane were to be Natsuki/Shizuru's offspring since she does seem to mix a lot of their traits together. That comment was the inspiration for the cracky prior-life relationship reveal in this chapter. XD

Tomoe Mami is from Puella Magi Madoka Magica. I... may or may not have bigger plans for her than just a cameo. *smile* We'll see!

And Natsuki-as-a-police-cadet is something I most definitely _will_ be exploring more in FuMoofu.

Cheers,

jen-chan

jen-chan-shaw. livejournal. com

jen-chan-shaw. tumblr. com

* * *

OMAKE I: The Future Is A Strange And Wonderful Place

[TIME-DISPLACED-HIMEKO is marveling at the magnificent world of the future all around her. She throws her arms to her sides and turns around in a circle, watching the tall towers all around her spin.]

TIME-DISPLACED-HIMEKO: Ohmigosh, Chikane-sama! The future is amazing! [Points at a building] What's that?

CHIKANE: That's an office tower.

TIME-DISPLACED-HIMEKO: [Points at a car] And what's that?

CHIKANE: That's a car.

TIME-DISPLACED-HIMEKO: [Points at a vending machine] And what's that?

CHIKANE: That's a vending machine. These are all pretty normal things you'd find in any city or metropolitan area.

TIME-DISPLACED-HIMEKO: [Points at a HARUKOW standing just beside her] And what's this girl doing here?

CHIKANE: [Eyebrow twitching] She's getting the screen time she so shamelessly negotiated for this fic.

HARUKOW: [Sniffing icily] Mou!


	5. Chp 3-3 - A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMooFu

Revolutions FuMooFu – A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts – Part III

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic (with cameos from other series)

October 19, 2014 - November 10, 2014

Total Arc Word Count: Approx 27,000

Part III Word Count: Approx 4,300

Please enjoy! There are more author's notes at the end and comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated!

* * *

Their meanderings through the cultural festival next took Chikane and Himeko to the gyms, where the kendo team, iaido team and fencing team were sharing a demonstrations time block; the festival had been packed so full with so much programming that even the most popular clubs found themselves needing to share the space.

Kendo went first, as the oldest and most established of the three teams, and as they finished and the fencing team took to the stage, Himeko asked softly, "Kendo and Iaido I am familiar with, but pray tell, Chikana-sama, what ist this third art? I've never seen a blade forged so thin."

"It's fencing - a sword art with European origins," Chikane explained. "Fencing is relatively new in Japan, but it has been gaining in popularity since Juri-san took gold in the last Olympics." The confusion in Himeko's eyes prompted Chikane to further explain, "the Olympics are an international sporting competition that happens once every four years; two years between summer and winter editions. Europe is a continent to the west of Japan. Arisugawa Juri is a director of Fuuka Academy, and also an adviser for the fencing club..."

And even as Chikane said this, the flame haired woman had entered into the room in full fencing gear, and strode purposefully across the length of the gym, approaching her team. Her eyes happened to spy Chikane and Himeko standing in the crowd, and she gave them a smile of acknowledgement, before turning her attention onto the fencing team captain, and murmuring an apology for her tardiness.

Chikane nodded her head back at Juri in acknowledgement, before dropping her voice to a softer whisper for Himeko, "... and she is also, incidentally, your ex."

Once upon a time, Chikane would have found it a bit awkward, maybe even difficult, to talk about Arisguawa Juri with Himeko, but over the last two years, had managed to make strides towards peace and civility with the flame-haired woman. Chikane was, of course, intimately aware of the debt of deep gratitude she owed Juri for everything she had done, directly and indirectly, for Himeko and herself both. It was a debt, Chikane was quite certain, that she would not be able to repay in this lifetime, and so was one that she often times found herself thinking about, especially whenever the busy woman showed up in front of her.

"Oh." Himeko blinked audibly a few times at this casual revelation, before her eyebrows crinkled in confusion again. "What is this _'ex'_ thou speakest of?"

Chikane almost sweatdropped. Almost. But before she could say anything more, the fencing team captain had begun to speak, and they turned their attention onto him so as not to be rude.

But even as the team captain was speaking (giving an introduction to those gathered about the nature of Fuuka Academy's fencing club, what the demonstration was going to be about, and of course, a little bit about the success and pedigree of the team's faculty adviser (hey, when it came to trying to recruit new members from the more established kendo/iaido clubs, all was fair in love, war, and advertising)), Chikane found herself drifting into the memory of a conversation Himeko had told her she had had with Juri while she had still been in the hospital...

* * *

_The knock on the door prompted Himeko's heart to start leaping about in her chest, and she hastily turned to look at it, an expression of joy and excitement on her face. _

_Today was the day that Chikane-chan was finally going to be able to visit her! _

_Her blue-black haired beloved had only spent a little more than a month in France under the tutelage of Kaoru Miki, and though Chikane had called every day, sometimes multiple times in one day, still, it was obvious that the distance between them was tearing up both of their hearts and causing both to feel miserably. Apparently that misery had been so all encompassing on Chikane's end that Miki had decided it was a good idea to ship her back to Fuuka and Himeko for a few days, and had even loaned his student the money for the plane ticket in addition to the time off from her studies. _

_So it was with a little bit of disappointment that Himeko discovered that it wasn't Chikane at her door, but rather, Arisugawa Juri, wearing such an expression of vulnerability on her face that Himeko wanted to kick herself because she knew that Juri had seen that split second of disappointment on her face and had been extremely hurt by it - so hurt, in fact, that the flame-haired woman had simply blinked, swallowed, and then turned to leave._

_"No, Juri-chan, wait! Don't go! DON'T GO!" Himeko cried, frantically trying to get out of the hospital bed. She swung her legs over the edge of the mattress, put her full weight on her feet, and an absolutely agonizing pain shot through her lower torso in extreme protest. Himeko couldn't help herself and she cried out, falling over roughly onto her face and bruising everything. _

_The commotion quickly caught Juri's attention, and the redhead whirled around to see Himeko had thrown herself onto the floor in an attempt to come after her. Her blue-green eyes went wide as saucers with alarm. "Jesus!" Juri swore, running into the room and kneeling down beside her ex-girlfriend to help her up. "Nurse! Nurse, please! Come quickly!" She cried at the door._

_"It's okay, I'm okay," Himeko lied weakly, even as she trembled from the pain and couldn't quite stop herself from clinging to Juri's arm. "I'm okay, Juri-chan! I'm okay!" _

_Eventually, the nurse came, and between the both of them, they were able to get Himeko back into the bed. Luckily, somehow, the fall hadn't ripped any of Himeko's stitches, and it didn't appear like the tawny-haired woman had broken anything else, though the bruises on her arms, elbows and knees were going to be magnificently multi-colored for a few days._

_After the nurse left, Juri sat down on the chair beside Himeko and gazed at the bed-ridden woman, an expression of tired relief on her face, and Himeko gave Juri the most sheepish expression she could, poking her index fingers together._

_Juri exhaled noisily, shaking her head in disbelief, but she couldn't help herself; she let a small smile come onto her face. _

_And Himeko, seeing that smile, couldn't help but let a small, shy, hopeful one come onto her own as well._

_They sat in silence for a long time, able to make eye contact with each other, but not quite able to say any words, until finally, Himeko mustered her courage, and reached out to take Juri's hand, and gave it a tight squeeze. _

_"I'm sorry, Juri-chan. I'm so... I'm so sorry."_

_Juri looked into Himeko's eyes, and the solemnity, and sincerity in those eyes, and in those words, were unmistakable. "Himeko," Juri finally said, holding those amethyst eyes in her blue-green own, her voice soft, but firm. "What were you *thinking*?"_

_Himeko continued to hold Juri's gaze for as long as she could, before the guilt and shame overwhelmed her, and she had to look away. She had never screwed up so royally as she had the night she had re-met Chikane-chan and realized that Juri-chan had *not* in fact, been that special someone, just for her. "I'm sorry, Juri-chan. I just... I just didn't know what to do. I didn't know which way would have hurt you the least..."_

_"I'd say this was pretty bad." Juri replied flatly, reaching into her pocket and bringing out a post-it note that had three words written on it in Himeko's handwriting: She's the one._

_Himeko winced, but didn't shy away. She deserved everything Juri was saying to her._

_Juri's gaze was intense, but they softened a little as she crumpled the note and pitched it into the waste basket beside the bed. "But you know what? That wasn't the worst part, Himeko. You... you didn't want to stay, that night, and I stayed you, so I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised to find you gone by the morning. And I even have to agree with you; there probably wasn't a way to do it painlessly, given the circumstances. I can... I can appreciate wanting to make a clean cut." But though the redhead was able to say the words clearly, it was obvious from the infliction in her voice, the catches in her words, that she didn't fully believe herself._

_"... but did you really have to ignore my goddamned calls for so long?"_

_Now the tone in Juri's voice was sharp, and again, Himeko winced, cringing, but she could only nod weakly, acknowledging the poorness of her judgement without protest or excuse, for there really were none she could give._

_They were silent again, Juri staring at Himeko who could not quite meet her eyes._

_'I understand,' Himeko wanted to say. But the lump in her throat prevented any of the words from escaping. 'I understand if you want nothing more to have to do with me, Juri-chan. I don't deserve to have you in my life...'_

_Then Juri took another deep breath, and closed her eyes. When she reopened them, the fiery anger inside them had softened into a complicated, pained one. She looked down at Himeko's hand, still holding onto one of her own, and placed her other hand over top of it, giving it a gentle squeeze before releasing Himeko's hand entirely._

_Juri then reached out and gently ran her fingers through Himeko's hair, taking a lock of it and tucking it tenderly behind an ear. "In the face of destiny," she said softly, melancholy clearly audible in her words, though curiously, no bitterness, "in the face of eternity, and miracles, and shining things... what hope do mere mortals have of finding happiness?" _

_The look on Juri's face caused Himeko's heart to squeeze terribly in her heart - with guilt, with sorrow. She jerked her head up and opened her mouth, blurting, "no one deserves happiness more than you, Juri-chan!" She swore. "No one-" But before she could continue to answer her former lover's rhetoric, Juri silenced her with a finger on the lips. "I get it, Himeko. You were not meant for me. You were never mine. Himemiya..." And Juri's brow knitted again with the pain of finding a truth she just fell on the wrong side of. "It was Himemiya you were looking for this entire time. Not me. I get that. But, I just... I just want you to know that you will always have a place in my heart. And I sincerely hope that you will not become just someone that I used to know. Can you promise me at least that much, Himeko? Please?"_

_And the vulnerability, the yearning, the simplicity in Juri's undemanding plea, was enough to bring tears to the corners of Himeko's eyes. She reached up to take Juri's hands from her lips, and held it to the side of her face, trembling softly. "Oh Juri-chan...! I'm...! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I never... I never meant to hurt you like this! _How could you... how could you still want me in your life, after everything I've done to you?!_" There was complete and utter disbelief in her voice._

_"Because you're *you* Himeko.__" Juri answered, and the smile on her face was full of relief, and wistful. "How could I, how could *anyone* come to love you and not continue to, even if you don't reciprocate? Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. You're not the first person I broke my heart on, and actually," Juri's smile grew a little weak, "you're not even the person I broke my heart the worst on. I don't regret our time together. I'd do it all over again, even if I knew it would end one day. So, please? Don't cut me out again. I want to be a part of your life, Himeko. Even if just a small part. I want you to be in mine too, in whatever way you feel comfortable."_

_Those tears gathered at the corners of Himeko's eyes began to fall as she swallowed. "I don't regret our time together either, Juri-chan! How... how could I? When you showed me so much kindness. When you pulled me out of my shell, and dared me to find the courage to seek happiness. I'd traveled through the entire world, but, I never really lived in it, until you. You'll always be a part of my life, Juri-chan. You'll always be a part of me."_

_"__Thank you. That's all I could ask for." Finally, Juri smiled, and leaned forward to pull Himeko into a tight hug. Himeko squeezed back, equally tightly._

_After a while, Juri let Himeko go, and wiped an invisible fleck of dust from the corner of her eyes. "So tell me, how is the rehabilitation going?"_

_"Slowly," Himeko confessed, her heart still flip flopping in her chest, like she couldn't quite believe that Juri still wanted to have anything to do with her at all. _

_But then, on the other hand, was it really so surprising? _

_Himeko had traveled the world for years on end, searching, always searching, for her special someone, that someone just for her, and Juri had felt so similar to her Chikane-chan, that she had even thought she had found her other half in the flame-haired woman. So perhaps, it wasn't really so surprising at all that Juri, in her gallantry so similar to Chikane's own, would take the high road and want to remain friends. "I still can't get very far without a walker, as you saw earlier."_

_Juri gave Himeko a smirk that had a bit of a bite to it. "You should be more careful. Your bones aren't quite as young as your girlfriend's." _

_Himeko blushed a bright pink, and Juri laughed, even as she got up out of her seat._

_"Oh! You're leaving so soon, Juri-chan?" _

_"I am," Juri replied, making her way to the door. "I don't want to overstay my welcome. Get better soon, Himeko. I'll be back to visit." And with another wave, Juri left. _

_In the hallway, away from Himeko's eyes, Juri stopped, put her hands in her pockets, and regarded the young woman who had been standing patiently outside the hospital room for who knows how long. _

_Chikane's blue-green eyes flashed with more than just a hint of jealousy against Juri's blue-green own, so similar in shade and emotion as well, for Juri's eyes were also burning, though hers was with the cold of one who was appraising another's character and judged that character to be lacking._

_They simply stood there, glaring at each other with an intensity born of very complex, highly contradictory feelings. __Juri dallied with the idea of saying something cruel to the other girl, but ultimately decided not to, and finally settled on saying, a bit tersely, after taking a deep breath, "she's all yours."_

_Chikane's mouth was pressed into a thin line, and the older woman could tell that the younger one was feeling very complicatedly towards her right now, but she too, managed to rise above to the higher road (for she would not be able to deem herself worthy of Himeko otherwise), and said, with not a hint of irony or sarcasm," ... thank you, Arisugawa-sensei. For everything."_

_"You and I both know that this isn't for you," Juri replied evenly, "but for *them*."_

_And Chikane knew precisely whom the older woman was referring to - not just the woman they both loved - Kurusugawa Himeko, but also for the woman they both loved whom was no longer with them - Tenjou Utena._

_And perhaps it was the memory of her mother that gave Chikane that bit of princely strength she needed to be gracious, and some of that anger left her eyes, as she gave a deep bow of respect to the flame-haired woman who had done so much for her. "Perhaps. But regardless, I am still the recipient of your kindness as well. Please know that your generosity is a debt that I can never hope to repay, but it is also one I could not fathom to squander."_

_Juri smirked. "You better not." And with that, she turned and left the hospital._

_Chikane stared after Juri's retreating form, subconsciously having balled her hands into fists. It wasn't until she heard Himeko's voice tentatively call for her from the room, "... Chikane-chan? Is that you?" did Chikane snap out of it, and then quickly turn to go see her beloved._

* * *

After the fencing club's demonstration ended, the team cleared the stage, with many students going off to the side to watch the third club's presentation. Of the three, Iaido was the smallest club, as the art of drawing live steel required a general level of maturity and calm most teenagers had yet to be able to appreciate.

Juri came down into the audience and sought out Chikane and Himeko, giving them nods of acknowledgement, as she stood beside them.

"The fencing team's roster has grown quite a bit," Chikane congratulated the adviser. When Juri had first started up the club in an attempt to grow awareness of the sport and find her successor, there hadn't been many takers. This had changed quite a bit after her successful performance at the last Olympics.

"Tachibana's got a good head on his shoulders," Juri replied, speaking well of the team captain. "I'm not sure anyone will make nationals this year, but we should put up a pretty decent showing at regionals." She glanced over at Himeko and gave her a kind smile. "I like the kimono pattern, Himeko. It brings out your eyes."

The tawny-haired woman blushed. "Mine thanks, Arisugawa-sensei, though I am unworthy of thine praise."

Juri blinked.

But before she could open her mouth and ask if Himeko was feeling alright, the captain of the Iaido team had roused his spectators into an excited gaggle, as he asked if anyone wanted to hold onto the live steel blade. Many a youngster clamored for the chance, and the captain sweatdropped, seeming to realize his blunder at offering children a chance to handle a very sharp weapon.

His eyes scanned the audience and his eyes fell on his favorite teacher and he brightened. "Ah! Kurusugawa-sensei! How about you? Would you be willing to help us out with this demonstration?"

Everyone turned to look at the pretty woman dressed in the fancy kimono, and it wasn't until she had countless pairs of eyes on her did Himeko blink and then point at her own nose. "Eh? Mineself?"

"Come on up, Kurusugawa-sensei!"

"E-eh?" The encouragement and excitement of everyone in the crowd, which included at least several art students who were clearly very fond of their substitute teacher, ended up pushing Himeko forward towards the stage before Chikane or Juri could really come to her rescue, and before she knew it, Himeko found herself facing the small crowd while the captain of the team smiled warmly at her and handed her his sheathed shinken.

Himeko held her palms out respectfully, and her eyes widened as the beautiful weapon was laid into her grip. The expression on Himeko's face suddenly changed from one of nervous bewilderment into one of calm, cool control and fondness as she flipped the sheathed weapon in her hands into a more proper, comfortable hold in one smooth, confident flick of the wrist, sliding the blade out an inch to give it a quick inspection before clicking it shut again, and returning it to the proper resting position with another twist of the arm.

Everyone in the audience's eyes widened (except for maybe Chikane and Juri), including the captain of the team, who sweatdropped, clearly mind-boggled.

"Aaah, Kurusugawa-sensei?" He said a little nervously, "I didn't realize you had any experience with Iaido..."

"Limited is mine practice with thine art, but this steel fits a comfort in mine hands," Himeko gave her student a kind smile. "May I?"

The student was a bit confused, but his volunteer-out-of-the-crowd _was_ a teacher (and presumably a responsible adult) after all, and she was handling the weapon with such casual mastery, that he found himself blurting out, "uh... okay?" And shuffling awkwardly off to the side of the stage.

The crowd hushed, their attention fully captivated by the pretty woman with the sword in the kimono.

Himeko shut her eyes and was absolutely still for a moment, finding her concentration. When her eyes snapped open, there was a solemn focus in their amethyst depths, and she launched herself into a complicated _kata_ \- a series of sword forms executed so beautifully and so smoothly, that it seemed less like she was moving from sword form to sword form, and more like she was performing an intricate, highly choreographed dance with a very sharp, very live blade.

Some part of Chikane's soul that would always know itself to be the Lunar Priestess, shrine maiden to Ame no Murakumo, god of swordmen, recognized the forms right away, and her heart sang with pride and awe at the glory that was her other half moving through the series of precise but fluid motions with a mastery so profound, no wonder iaido was known by some as_ moving zen_.

And as Himeko was wearing a traditional kimono that restricted the movement of her lower half quite thoroughly, so too could Chikane appreciate the genius with which her other half had modified the kata on the fly into one that accomplished the same feat with a fraction of the movement normally required without any hint of gracelessness.

The entire audience was stunned, and could only watch in awe and maybe even rapture, as Himeko finished off the kata with a beautiful flourish that sent the blade spinning about with a mesmerizing speed so fine that it seemed like she was handling several swords at once, before sliding the blade smoothly back into its sheath, and ending the performance with a bow of respect.

No one was quite able to respond to the display, and they all just sort of stood and stared at the tawny-haired woman like she was some sort of mythical creature before Himeko blushed, and hurried to the side of the stage to give the weapon back to the team captain.

Only then, did Juri begin to clap, slowly, an expression of awe on her face, and then the clapping spread through the audience until the applause was thunderous throughout the gym, accompanied by many a wolf whistle and cheer.

(It was, ironically, an entirely inappropriate way of expression one's appreciation for an art that gave such reverence to calm, tranquility, and composition, but hey, what could one expect from an atmosphere as jovial as a cultural festival's?)

Chikane barely noticed any of the noise and ruckus around her. She simply continued to gaze up at Himeko with adoration, reverence, and sudden desire - no, not just desire, but bodily _need _\- to lay claim to her other half - mind, body and soul - right then and there, to let everyone know that this magnificent creature was Kurugusawa Himeko and that she was _hers_, and _hers_ alone.

_Alas! _Chikane thought bitterly. _That we were stuck in such an inconveniently public place! _

Himeko, for her part, was gazing back at Chikane with such open love and shy pleasure that anyone who might not have known of the relationship between the student and the teacher could certainly guess.

In short: the rumour mill went absolutely crazy.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

I've been regretting the loss of this Juri/Himeko scene from Revolutions. I had written parts of this scene a long time ago, and it ended up on the cutting room floor because of where the story went, so I knew I wanted to include this resolution in some capacity for FuMooFu.

I hope this was okay.

Cheers,

jen-chan

jen-chan-shaw. livejournal. com

jen-chan-shaw. tumblr. com

* * *

OMAKE I: Yup! She Gets To Show Up In Every Single Chapter!

[CHIKANE and JURI stand in the crowd, and like everyone else, hushes, as HIMEKO stands on the stage and pulls the sword out of the sheath. With her eyes closed, HIMEKO launches into an exquisite series of complicated kata.]

CHIKANE: Oh my god. Himeko is so beautiful! I wantz her so bad!

[Suddenly, things take a turn towards the tragic as HIMEKO takes a step to her left and slices downwards with her blade and accidentally BEHEADS HARUKOW who was inexplicably standing on the stage beside her.]

AUDIENCE: ! ! ! !

HARUKOW: O_O ! ! [head falls off her shoulders and falls to the ground.] XP

HIMEKO: [Shrieking] Ohmigosh, Haruka-chan, what were you doing there?!

[Cue ambulance]


	6. Chp 3-4 - A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMooFu

Revolutions FuMooFu – A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts – Part IV

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic (with cameos from other series)

October 19, 2014 - November 10, 2014

Total Arc Word Count: Approx 27,000

Part IV Word Count: Approx 4,900

Please enjoy! There are more author's notes at the end and comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated!

* * *

The rest of the afternoon flew by with a speed that was only possible when one was completely engaged, enamored and entertained - of which Himeko was the textbook definition.

It was almost dizzying, all the excitement! The sights! The sounds! At times, the time-displaced woman could scarcely believe all the strange and wonderful things that she had witnessed - all the technological advances and social liberties she could not have even begun to dream of in her own time.

Cars! Telephones! _Zippers!_ On some level, Himeko realized, some part of her must have realized that all of these fantastical things were actually completely normal, and that some part of her was completely at home and comfortable with everything that was going on about her, because her excitement and disbelief had never overwhelmed her at all, and Himeko knew herself well enough to realize that had she been truly time displaced, she would have been much more fearful and un-accepting of the situation.

Or perhaps, she thought, as she and Chikane walked down one of the halls in the high school building of Fuuka Academy, poking their heads into each one of the classrooms to see what sort of exhibit or activity that class was putting on, maybe the reason for her relative calm and acceptance of the situation had more to do with the presence of the familiar young woman beside her.

Chikane-sama, (her Chikane-sama) had always been the epitome of calm and graceful command as was only befitting of the only daughter of the daimyo, and it was of great comfort to Himeko to know that, even in this lifetime, hundreds if not thousands of years later, that her ojou-sama not only retained her lady-like competence, and also still loved her - as all handmaidens wished of their highborn masters - but was also still _close_ to her. The graceful girl had been nothing short of completely doting on her all day, patient and kind, even though Himeko was sure she must have been an annoyance with all of her questions. And in addition to being very careful to stay close to Himeko, assisting in any matter that might have caused the time-displaced woman any hardship, Chikane had also given her a great many small kindnesses not necessitated by simple consideration - buying her small treats and trinkets, holding open doors and chairs...

No, Chikane-sama's attentiveness held an almost sort of... gentlemanly... feel about it.

It was a very curious sensation; Himeko could not help but feel a little bit of... _something _from the young woman that she couldn't quite place her finger on.

That this Chikane-sama loved her was undisputed, but there seemed to be a little something... something _different _about the nature of that love from what Himeko normally knew. And Himeko had not quite noticed this until their brief conversation with Arisugawa Juri-sama in the gymnasium. For some reason, Chikane-sama had seemed a little... pleased? (no, that was too strong a term. Relieved perhaps?)... to learn that Himeko did not recognize the flame-haired woman to be anyone of significance to her in her own lifetime.

In the end, Himeko decided, it probably had to do with the fact that she just was not quite sure how this world of the future seemed to work. It was a bit incredible for her to learn that it was mandatory for all young people in Japan to complete education until the ninth grade, or around their 15th year, and that adulthood was not until the 20th year. That it was actually considered not quite socially appropriate to complete less than twelve years schooling was a very far cry from the scant three years' worth of schooling Himeko herself had completed - and that was only because Chikane-sama's station in life had warranted need for a study companion during her lessons!

"Doth all students of the middle, senior and post-secondary levels participate in this annual celebration?" Himeko asked Chikane, as they left the art classroom that Himeko herself supposedly taught in.

Many displays had been set up around the classroom, showcasing a collection of the finest works of art as produced by the middle school students in the last semester. Tables had also been set up around the room with a sample of art supplies, so that anyone who visited the room could give art a try. Himeko had somehow ended up giving an impromptu brush-stroke lesson to the other visitors in the room when she had idly doodled a small, simple, onna-e styled emakimono of everyday court life (the lady in the picture, unsurprisingly, resembled Chikane-sama to no small degree). Everyone had been very impressed with her command of the brush - even Himeko herself, who experienced a very strange sensation when she realized that the muscle memory in her arm was a lot more advanced than the skill her own 16 year old (long dead) body had accumulated.

Chikane nodded. "Yes, that's right. Fuuka Academy is a little unusual from most schools in that it is an elevator system from elementary through to university, so there are a lot more students at a wider range of ages from as young as 6 to as old as 22 who participate. Usually, cultural festivals for elementary students are orientated towards the parents with a lot of work from the teachers and staff, while middle school and high school festivals are student run, with little teacher involvement. Cultural festivals at the university level are usually not quite as robust as the ones at the high school level, as the students have more going on in their lives beyond classes."

Himeko smiled, intrigued. "Ah! Then what manner of event is Chikane-sama a part of?"

At this question, Chikane gave Himeko a knowing smile. "My class is running a maid cafe; that is, a replication of a restaurant in a classroom, where the students are the cooks and servers and wear maid-themed uniforms."

Himeko's mouth dropped into an 'o' of surprise and scandal. "What?! Chikane-sama in the guise of a common servant? A maid? Who couldst dare suggest such a thing?!"

Chikane was genuinely surprised by Himeko's indignant outburst before she started to chuckle softly.

Himeko's brow crinkled in confusion. "Didst I say something I shant have?"

The graceful young woman shook her head. "No, you've said nothing wrong. It's just that I had asked for an exemption from my home room's offering, as I am actually collaborating with Fuuka University's student orchestra for a concert in the evening. When you - my Himeko - learned of this, you - she - was very disappointed, and had tried to get me to 'borrow' an outfit so she could at least see me wear it once."

Himeko could not help but remain confused. "I doth not understand. Why wouldst she, er, I, ever wish to see Chikane-sama's form so sullied as to be in the drab garb of peasantry?" Although, now that she said it out loud, some part of Himeko actually found herself quite giddy about the prospect of seeing her lady so unusually dressed. Perhaps it was that part of her that wasn't of her own lifetime, that was actually of _this_ lifetime, when station and social hierarchy was not nearly so rigid as her own lifetime's.

"... Perhaps?" Himeko gave it a little bit of thought before a small epiphany came over her, "in this day and age, is even the dress of a servant beautiful?"

"I'm not sure that 'beautiful' is the correct adjective. Memorable might be a better one." Chikane replied. She seemed to be war with something inside her head for moment, before she finally smiled, and asked Himeko, "... would you like see the cafe?"

Himeko's face brightened and she nodded eagerly.

* * *

Nao glared at her visitors. She probably could have gotten away with unceremoniously tossing them all out of the classroom if her homeroom class rep hadn't been such a _raging_ Fujino fangirl back in the day, and pulled rank on her. And despite Nao's own rank as Vice President of the school, when it came to matters of the individual class, the class rep's word was apparently final.

"Kaichou!" The girl practically gushed, stars and flowers and all manner of sparkly sight gags crowding up the space behind her. "Welcome to our class's cafe! Please! Have a seat!"

"Ara, thank you very much." Shizuru smiled warmly at the teenager (causing the bow she wore around her neck to spin in excitement), and she, Natsuki and Mami followed the high school senior to the far end of the classroom where a bunch of desks had been arranged together with a cute red and white table cloth to form a table.

"Aaah, this brings back memories," Shizuru sighed nostalgically, sitting down in the chair, and gazing about the room fondly. "My class did a cafe for our cultural festival when I was in the tenth year as well."

Natsuki's expression was one of clear amusement as she sat down beside Shizuru. She was still wearing her police cadet uniform, though she had pulled a blazer jacket over top, since she was on break from the table at the moment. "We did one too. Doesn't everyone end up doing either a cafe or a haunted house at some point during high school?"

When one of the students of class 12-C came by to put some complimentary tea in front of them, Shizuru put her hands together in front of her in a universally recognized gesture of apology, and said, "if it isn't too much trouble, could we perhaps ask for Vice President Yuuki to attend to us?"

The girl wasn't fussed, and Nao found herself standing in front of her fellow Hime wearing the wholly embarrassing, bright orange and pink bejeweled affair she had fought tooth and nail to get her classmates to reject as the uniform for the cafe (Nao had lost the vote by a single person and still blamed Chikane for failing to show up to class that day to shift the result into her favor).

It wasn't so much a _maid_ uniform so much as a cross between one, a vegas chorus-line dancer's outfit, and something you'd see at Rio Carnival: it short, it seemed like someone had gone to the karaoke place the Hime liked to frequent, taken the most fetish-y costumes that came with the room rental, and mashed them all together in one outrageous, over-the-top display of caricaturized sexism.

"If you take out your phones, I will burn down your homes." Nao threatened when Natsuki sniggered loudly and didn't even try to cover her mirth. Shizuru wisely pulled out a bunch of napkins from her purse instead. "Anyway, what the hell are _you_ guys doing here? Isn't it lame for graduates to still spend so much time in high school?"

"And here I had heard nothing but good things about the service at class 12-C's maid cafe." Shizuru retorted in mock disappointment, pretending to be affronted though she couldn't stop smiling with her eyes.

"I think it might be a different kind of_ 'service'_," Natsuki grinned, eyeing first the criminally short length of the outfit's skirt over top of the black fishnets, and then letting her eyes wander up the outfit to the aggressively low cut of its top.

Nao... didn't really fill out the uniform very well, and she shot Natsuki a venomous glare, before smiling very thinly. "I'd be careful if I were you, Kuga. Considering the sheer number of times you've been caught in something _waaay_ worse than this."

Natsuki's eyes narrowed, clearly hearing the redhead's threat. "You wouldn't." She hissed.

There was an unholy glint in Nao's eye. "Try me."

"Aaah, Nao-sempai," Mami interrupted, smiling as peacefully as she could, "I heard your class has a marvelous cheese dessert, and was hoping to get something for Bebe." She motioned to the fourth person sitting at her table, the tiny doll-like Child who couldn't quite see over top of the desk sitting on the chair, so had decided to sit on the edge of the table proper.

"Huh? Oh, right, just wait a minute." Wordlessly, Nao went away to get the snacks for her so-called friends.

"Well now." Shizuru closed her eyes and cupped her hands around her tea cup, bringing it up to her lips. She opened a single eye and shot Mami a crimson look of appraisal. "Don't you already have Yuuki-san well trained."

The blonde haired girl smiled opaquely, bringing her own tea up to her lips. "I have no idea what you could be talking about, Sempai."

"I'm sure you don't."

At that point, Nao came back with a few plates of dessert and set them down in front of her customers, before leaning casually against the back of Mami's chair, not seeming to notice how close this put her backside to Mami's head. "So? What have you guys seen so far?"

Shizuru glanced up at Nao, then down at Mami, then over at Natsuki knowingly (who simply blinked at her), before taking another sip of tea. "Quite a bit." She simply said.

Now both Nao and Mami blinked, but before they could do any more, Natsuki cut in to maintain the peace and said, "we've had a good turnout to the table so far. A couple second years came by with Childs; they might be seeking you out come Monday, Nao."

The redhead nodded. "Just a couple? Huh. The 'adoption' rate seems to be slowing down lately. We haven't had that many in the last few months. Guess most orphans would have already found their Hime if they were ever going to."

"Perhaps," Shizuru agreed. "Or perhaps there is another pattern we have not yet begun to ascertain?"

"Pattern?" Mami raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Shizuru put down her tea. "To be honest, I'm not quite sure if this is the pattern or not, but it seems to me that those times when orphans seek out Hime peak according to the general mood in the air. Like earlier in the year, when the tropical storm hit, and so many people lost their homes; there were quite a few more 'adoptions' as you say, than usual..."

"Huh." Natsuki blinked. "I never thought of it that way. Do you think this might be something we should talk to Fumi and Mashirou about?"

"It might not be a bad idea."

"But, priorities first," Mami smiled as she picked up a fork and spooned out a portion of the cheese dessert for Bebe, whose face had deformed into one with massive glimmering eyes as she stared hungrily at her plate, "here you go, Bebe."

The Child grinned, almost scarily, and her head ballooned to several times its normal size before she opened her mouth to show a row of razor sharp teeth surrounding a gaping maw, each tooth as large as a steak knife. She chomped down on Mami's fork unnervingly closed to her fingers before her head shrunk back to its normal size and she pulled back, licking her lips and wiggling her ear-flaps in excitement.

Bebe hopped up and down gleefully on the desk, wordlessly begging her Master for another bite.

Natsuki, Shizuru and Nao all stared at Bebe with wide eyes (sweatdrops adorning the heads of two out of three of them), clearly unnerved with how downright frightening the normally textbook kawaii Child could be.

Mami, for her part, appeared completely non-fussed as she simply spooned up some more cheese dessert for her Child.

"Oi, Nao! We have more customers!" Called a classmate.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming," groused the redhead who turned to face the door and then gave a snort. "Oh, well, don't _you_ have a lot of nerve showing up here! I thought you were too _busy_ to help your class out."

The group seated at the table looked up to see Chikane and Himeko approaching them, a highly amused smile on Chikane's face, while Himeko looked quite startled as she took in what the class was trying to pass off as a 'maid' outfit.

"The choir's performance appears to be running a little behind schedule, so the orchestra's practice time is being cut back and I find myself with just a spot of free time," Chikane said easily. "And Himeko wanted to see what the fuss was all about."

"Does she now?" A toothy smile suddenly appeared on Nao's face, and her eyes narrowed slyly. Grabbing Himeko's shoulders, Nao marched her off to the table Natsuki, Shizuru and Mami were sitting at, and pulled a chair out for her, seating her beside Mami. The redhead then picked Bebe up off the table and deposited her into Mami's lap. "Have a seat, Sensei!"

"Eh? But what about Chika-"

"Oh, Himemiya arrived just in time." Nao's smile was just a little malicious as she called over to the class rep. "So whaddaya think? The great and mighty Himemiya's got a spare minute and deigned to share it with her homeroom. Shall we put her to work?"

The class rep's glasses suddenly fogged up as the heat under her collar released itself in an almost visible cloud of steam; she was evidently also a card-carrying member of the Himemiya Fan Club too. "W-well, Himemiya-san," she squeaked out. "You _were_ only excused because you were busy with the concert, but if you're not busy right now, we do have a few more uniforms..."

The glare Chikane shot Nao was almost murderous. It was a testament to the size of Nao's figurative testicles that the redhead held the blue-black haired girl's gaze unerringly, and even grinned back.

Revenge, as they say, was a dish best served with heaps of humiliation.

"Don't worry, Chikane." Natsuki tried to be helpful, even as she grinned. "We'll look after Himeko - go change."

And before the normally proper-to-the-point-of-haughty student could open her mouth, Nao had spun her around and marched her to the nearest bathrooms.

The friends at the table could not help but laugh amongst themselves at what promised to be a greatly entertaining spectacle, until Shizuru noticed that Himeko wasn't exactly laughing.

"Ara, what's wrong, Himeko-san?" Shizuru smiled disarmingly, catching the eye of the other tawny-haired woman at the table. "Didn't you want to see Chikane-san in the maid outfit?"

As crimson eyes met amethyst ones, Himeko gave a squeak of alarm and bolted up from her chair, stepping back and bowing to Shizuru profusely. "I dare not, my lady!"

Shizuru raised an eyebrow at the woman's behavior before Natsuki quickly got up and, putting a hand on Himeko's back, gently coaxing her back to the table. "Aaah, it's okay, Himeko. Whoever we might have been doesn't matter. We're all friends now, so please sit." And with these words, Natsuki managed to get Himeko back in the seat, although the woman still seemed quite nervous to be in the presence of everyone else at the table.

Natsuki explained what had happened, and Shizuru understood. It took a little while to bring Mami up to speed, with a highly abridged version of events from two years past, as she had not been an active participant of the Day the Skies Split. But, Kurusugawa-sensei was one of her favorite teachers, so she insisted on knowing what exactly was going on.

"Wow." Mami breathed, regarding the substitute art teacher with massive eyes. "_All_ her past lives?"

Himeko nodded. "Indeed, though I am unable to tell which life it tis that mine mind currently re-lives. Mine head becomes cloudy when I try to reach for markers of time."

"That's too bad," the middle school student gave her teacher a smile that was meant to be comforting. "And here I thought you might have been able to help me out with Suigura-sensei's history quiz tomorrow."

"How fascinating," Shizuru murmured, giving Himeko a look of interest. "To be able to recognize us as having been a part of your life in the past..."

"Yeah," Natsuki smirked. "And get this. Apparently, some lifetime ago, I was Chikane's _father_."

"Really!" The crimson eyed woman chuckled. And then she turned her mirthful expression onto Himeko, "might you know who I was then, Himeko-san?"

This question caused Himeko to fidget uncomfortably, but she ultimately nodded, "yes, m'lady. Thou art Chikane-sama's honored mother - Natsuki-sama's third concubine."

The look Shizuru shot Natsuki was so swift and held so much _venom_ in it that Himeko sweatdropped.

Shizuru's eyes bore into Natsuki's panicked own and almost seem to glow with crimson promises of unpleasantness. "_Third _concubine?" She echoed dangerously. "So there's two more and a _wife_ in front of me?"

"H-Hey, wait a sec, Shizuru!" Natsuki swallowed nervously, putting her hands up in front of herself for peace (or maybe protection). "You can't seriously be angry with me about _that_! T-that's not even me! That's some dude I might have been a gazillion years ago!" Natsuki turned desperately to Himeko and cried, "oh god, Himeko! Please! Say something! Tell her that wasn't me!"

But Himeko wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to say, as she didn't quite understand the mechanics of how much a soul remained itself through the cycles of reincarnation - only that enough of hers had always remained to know joy every time she reunited with Chikane-sama's own. "I... I'm afraid I can't say! I know not the divine's intentions for thine immortal soul; only that mine hath always sought Chikane-sama's!"

Natsuki chibified further. "That's not helping!"

Eventually, Shizuru calmed down enough for Natsuki to not feel like she was surrounded by landmines, and the table of friends even managed to share a laugh, although Shizuru still gave Natsuki a bit of a put-out pout. "I cannot believe I would ever come _fourth_ in Natsuki's heart."

For her part, Natsuki grumbled and poked at her dessert, disgruntled. "Neither can I." She muttered darkly.

Seeing that her reaction (which she had played up waaay more than she had actually felt) had actually upset her lover, Shizuru gave Natsuki an apologetic look, and squeezed her hand. "Forgive me, Natsuki. You know I am more than secure in my knowledge of your affections for me. I was just playing."

And Natsuki blushed but shot Shizuru a grateful look.

"Um," Looking back and forth between the young women who once were her lord and lady, Himeko wondered if she should speak up and then realized it was too late to backpedal when both of them looked at her. "If it matters, Natsuki-sama's union with Shizuru-sama is the only one to produce a child. Natsuki-sama's marriage was brokered before birth, and the ladies in front of thee, Shizuru-sama, were gifted from allies the clan could scarcely refuse without declaring open warfare."

Evidently, this bit of understanding _did_ matter, as a very poignant look passed between Natsuki and Shizuru, and a very pleased blush stretched across the blue-black haired young woman's cheeks, even as a small, fond smile came to the crimson-eyed woman's face.

And then Shizuru leaned over and gave Natsuki a kiss. "Oh alright. I forgive you."

"Oh please, just get a _room _already," Mami begged, rolling her eyes and feeding Bebe another piece of cheese dessert.

Himeko blinked a bit confusedly at this display, and got the distinct impression that something very important and meaningful was being introduced to her as a concept right now: that kiss the two women had shared, however brief, was most _definitely not _the chaste affair betwix female friends.

Himeko's heart started to pound wildly in her heart.

But before Himeko could do anything else, there was a tangible change in the air, and everyone at the table suddenly looked up over her head, towards the door.

Blinking, Himeko turned to look as well, and her own eyes widened at the sight of her Chikane-sama being pushed back into the room by her redheaded friend. Whereas the outfit was ill-fitting on Nao's thin frame, Chikane filled out that salacious outfit the way it was meant to be filled out and Himeko's heart somehow managed to both leap up into her throat, and down into her loins at the same time, and start beating with an almost frenetic sort of urgency.

"How in the world did this... this _thing_ get approved by the student morality squad?!" Chikane was hissing over her shoulder at Nao. But as she approached the table that Himeko was sitting at, a wicked blush stretched across her cheeks, she salvaged as much dignity as she could by standing up straight, keeping her head held high, and walking forward of her own accord as opposed to being dragged in; there was a lot that could be said for confidence being able to make a terrible outfit suddenly work.

"It's your own damn fault for not being here to prevent this from happening," Nao snapped back, even as they approached the table. She smirked at her friends. "So? Whaddaya think?"

"I can't believe it's you who got stuck in that thing and not me," Natsuki said, completely deadpan. The heavens had clearly made some sort of strange karmic mistake upstairs. "Shizuru, remind me to donate more than 5 yen next time we go past a temple."

For her part, Shizuru could only nod mutely as she let her eyes linger down Chikane's body in appreciation for a little bit.

Of course, as good friends as they were, it was not Natsuki or Shizuru's reaction that Chikane had been worried about but rather Himeko's own.

And the time-displaced woman could not do much more than stare.

The outfit was outrageous by modern standards; its wearer would have been_ drowned in moral outrage by a mob_ in Himeko's time.

"..."

Chikane swallowed, worried. "Himeko?" She said, uncertainly.

That finally snapped the kimono-clad woman out of it, and she blinked, a wicked blush coming onto her cheeks. Himeko struggled with the right words for a moment before she gave Chikane a weak smile. "Thou art correct, Chikane-sama. Um. The clothing is, um, most definitely... memorable."

Chikane's brow crinkled a little, as though she wasn't quite sure how to take Himeko's comments, before she looked away, and said in a small voice, "couldst thou please, um, change back? Chikane-sama? Mine thanks for the indulgence, but I'm afraid I'm quite... overwhelmed with witnessing you in this... attire..."

Chikane's expression bordered on confused for just a moment before she gave a sigh, and nodded. Turning on her heel, she left to change back.

The friends at the table were a bit confused with this turn of events - a little surprised by Himeko's reaction, even given the extenuating circumstances. It wasn't until a few more moments of silence passed that Shizuru finally noticed something, and realized what was going on. Reaching into her purse for the rest of her napkins, she helpfully dabbed under Himeko's nose where a trickle of blood was escaping.

"Oh! A thousand gratitudes, Shizuru-sama," Himeko uttered, blushing furiously, as she took hold of the napkin.

"It's alright," Shizuru said, giving Himeko a kind look. "I wouldn't want to have to share Natsuki looking like that with anyone else either."

Natsuki shot Shizuru a look of misgiving, and the crimson-eyed woman laughed. "Ah, well, that might be a bold-faced lie."

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

I'm really starting to regret trying to make Himeko talk in old english. At times I feel like she's actually speaking like a pirate. -_-;;

(And thanks for taking the time to drop a review, Lucy! Lexy! Guest! XD If you had an ffnet account, I'd PM you my thanks, but as it is, this will have to do!)

Cheers,

jen-chan

jen-chan-shaw. livejournal. com

jen-chan-shaw. tumblr. com

* * *

OMAKE I: So Who Was Your Wife?

[HIMEKO, NATSUKI, SHIZURU and MAMI are seated at the table in CHIKANE &amp; NAO's class's maid cafe.]

SHIZURU: Ara, if I was merely Natsuki's 3rd concubine, then who is the wife?!

HIMEKO: Yar! She be a fair-haired beast by the name of Suzushirou. Indeed, she stands just yonder thar! [Points at the door behind SHIZURU.]

HARUKOW: Mooou.

SHIZURU: ... ... ... [Turns to look at NATSUKI incredulously] Seriously? You married that cow?

NATSUKI: [Helpless shrug] I presume she was much better looking before the wedding?


	7. Chp 3-5 - A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMooFu

Revolutions FuMooFu – A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts – Part V

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic (with cameos from other series)

October 19, 2014 - November 10, 2014

Total Arc Word Count: Approx 27,000

Part V Word Count: Approx 4,400

Please enjoy! There are more author's notes at the end and comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated!

* * *

About an hour or so before her concert was to begin, Chikane (back in her Fuuka school uniform) made her way with Himeko over to the auditorium on the university grounds to prepare. The typical cacophony of noise that was an orchestra warming up greeted their ears when Chikane opened the heavy door and ushered Himeko inside.

The auditorium was not the best that Chikane had ever played in, not by a long shot, but as far as school auditoriums went, it was quite nice and more than serviceable. The chairs were plush and velvet lined, and the walls had been specifically designed to dampen unwanted echoing to provide clarity while still bouncing that sound around to allow it to reverberate efficiently; it was a very bright hall. The lights in the auditorium had already been dimmed, leaving only the stage fully illuminated, and on that stage, the members of Fuuka University's orchestra were warming up and practicing. There weren't quite enough members to be a full orchestra, but the percussion, brass, strings and woodwinds were all well represented in its ranks.

Fuuka's music program was not the most noteworthy in the region, but its students genuinely loved the arts and had been very excited for the opportunity to work with a published composer - even if that composer was still new to the music scene, and their junior in years. Chikane had been extremely flattered and unable to say no when some of the orchestra's most senior students had approached her, asking if she would conduct them through a short set of her songs during the concert - the ones that had been made popular after being featured in a movie, and had won Chikane industrial accolades.

Himeko wore a look of wonderment on her face as she approached the stage alongside Chikane. When they reached the front of the room, Chikane's eyebrows lifted in surprise as she spied two people sitting in the front row, evidently waiting for her.

One was a lean, tall, but handsome man with ocean blue hair and eyes, who wore a tailored blue blazer and snug white pants - Chikane's mentor: Kaoru Miki.

The other was a Japanese woman a little younger than her mentor, with dark, shoulder length hair and deep brown eyes that harboured just a hint of crimson in their depths. She had pushed her sunglasses up into her hair, and was wearing the finest of Italian fashions, from her urban trench coat, through her wine-red dress and sparkling accessories, down to the tidy stiletto heels on her feet.

Her name was Kanina Shizuka, but most of the entertainment world knew her by her stage name: Rosa Canina, an operatic singer of Japanese origin whom had trained and studied music in Italy starting in her teens. Rosa Canina had found a small amount of success since her debut, but it hadn't been until relatively recently that her star had started to rise, after she had started to lend her talents to more commercial projects, and ended up providing the vocals to the songs that Chikane had penned.

"Miki-sensei! Shizuka-san!" Chikane smiled brilliantly as she came up to the pair. "What are you doing here?"

Both adults stood up to give Chikane a greeting - Miki's hug out of familiarity, while Shizuka's hug and kisses on both of Chikane's cheeks, at the corners of her mouth, reflected almost a decade of living submerged in Italian culture.

"I heard you thought yourself ready to land your first conducting gig, and I couldn't help myself," Miki teased. "So you think of yourself as a maestro already, Chikane?"

A light blush sprung to Chikane's cheeks and she knew that though her mentor's words were kind, he was also gently reminding her that, for all her commercial success, she was still a student - _his student_\- and that in that regard, she still had quite a ways to go to be properly trained in the musical arts. "Of course not, sensei," Chikane demurred. "Forgive my hubris. This is just a spot of fun, and I don't mean to be arrogant. I am not directing the entire concert - merely a set of my own penmanship, at the request of my seniors."

The expression on Chikane's face was suitably chastised to mollify her mentor, and he gave her an understanding smile. "Well, alright then. Just so you don't bring embarrassment onto yourself, or I. Or Shizuka-san for that matter."

Rosa Canina laughed. "For goodness sake, Miki. The movie this music was featured on was about giant vampiric robots. What's left to be embarrassed about?" And the three musicians shared a laugh with each other.

"Himeko, this is Kanina Shizuka-san, my collaborator from Europe," Chikane said, bringing the small kimono-clad woman at her side forward. "Shizuka-san, this is Kurusugawa Himeko."

"It is mine honor to meet thee, Kanina-sama," Himeko said, bowing with great reverence, but seeming, somehow, to be a little anxious and maybe even worried.

Picking up on Himeko's discomfort, Rosa Canina eschewed the friendlier Italian greeting for the more polite Japanese one, and returned Himeko's bow with her own tip of the head. "The honor is all mine, Kurusugawa-san." She smiled as kindly as possible, flicking her eyes over to catch Chikane's own with bemusement, "I have heard much about you."

Chikane raised an eyebrow. "Have you?"

The mostly-Italian-by-now woman chuckled. "You think yourself a very private individual, Chikane-kun, and indeed, you don't speak very much of yourself, but every song you pen speaks so clearly of Kurusugawa-san, that after a simple study of your work, I feel as though I've known her all my life."

Both Chikane and Himeko colored from this comment, prompting both Miki and Rosa Canina to laugh again.

It was at that moment that the lead violinist came up to the group of four, an expression of anxiety on her face. "Hey, Himemiya, we have a slight problem."

Chikane turned to face the worried girl. "Yes? What's the matter?"

"It's Ishida. She came down with something yesterday. The poor kid didn't tell anyone and has been trying to power through it but it's gotten so bad that she's almost lost her voice entirely. She'll be fine with some bed rest but she won't be able to sing today."

"Oh." Chikane's brow furrowed. "That's unfortunate. I'm glad she will be fine but she must be disappointed. Does she have an understudy?"

The helpless expression on the lead violinist's face said everything, and Chikane's frown deepened, before her expression perked up and she smiled almost coyly at the Italian trained singer in front of her.

Rosa Canina laughed. "It's been a long time since I was at the age to perform during a school cultural festival, Chikane-kun. Are you sure that would be entirely appropriate?"

The lead violinist spoke up before Chikane could, and it wasn't until she said, "Yes! Yes, it's entirely appropriate, Rosa Canina-sama!" with the entire orchestra having maneuvered up to the edge of the stage and all nodding vigorously in unison that Chikane realized that everyone in the room knew exactly whom had unexpected showed up to their concert, and was more than just a little star struck.

For the musicians, there was only one thing better than being able to perform a rendition of work for the original artist of said work in the audience, and that was having that artist _participate_ in the performance with them directly.

Chikane got the distinct impression that Ishida's illness had probably been greatly exaggerated (seeing as how the girl was standing in the wings on the stage with an expression of absolute star-struck adoration on her face), but if everyone else was okay with it, she wasn't going to stand in the way.

"Himeko, would you mind waiting for me a moment?" Chikane asked, gesturing to the seat in the middle of the front row - the best one in the house.

"Of course," Himeko nodded, taking her seat, as Chikane went up onto the stage with Rosa Canina beside her.

Miki gave Himeko a curious look as he took the seat to her left. "Is something wrong, Kurusugawa-san? You don't seem like yourself today."

"Ah!" Himeko looked a bit anxious for a moment, "Forgive mine clumsiness; I am not feeling entirely well today." The expression that Miki gave her suggested he didn't quite buy her story, and Himeko knew she was absolutely terrible at lying. "Um, pray tell, what tis the nature of the love twix Chikane-sama and... and Kanina-sama?"

Miki raised his eyebrows at Himeko's unusual words, but he was too polite to call her out on it. "Chikane and Shizuka? I would say they are more acquaintances than friends; Shizuka is just friendlier and more personable than most, on account of all that time she's spend living in Rome."

"Mere acquaintances?" Himeko's brow furrowed. "But... she acted so... intimately with Chikane-sama..."

The blue-haired man was a bit perplex at the tawny-haired woman's anxieties; he had met Himeko on several occasions, of course, and knew that Himeko traveled extensively; surely she could recognize a fairly standard Italian greeting if she saw one? Unless... was she actually _jealous_ about Chikane's affections? Now that didn't seem likely - she had never been clingy or anything like that in the past... Realizing that he probably just didn't have all the information about the current situation right now, all Miki could do was offer Himeko a kind smile and say, "Kurusugawa-san, I'm not sure what might have happened recently to cause you this anxiety, but surely you must know that Chikane-kun is nothing but utterly faithful to you...?"

Himeko woman seemed only to be more confused as she pondered Miki's words.

* * *

The auditorium began to fill up as the time for the concert drew near, and the solemn, almost majestic atmosphere of the empty space turned into one of general excitement and liveliness as more and more people sat down, until the auditorium was complete filled with not a single chair left. Turning around in her seat, Himeko could see some of Chikane's friends she had met earlier in the day had come to see the performance - Mai with a young man with two toned gold and brown hair, Takumi and a girl with long green hair, Natsuki with Shizuru, Nao and Mami from the maid cafe earlier. They saw her and waved, but the seats to the front had already been claimed, and they couldn't quite make their way down to her.

The orchestra was already seated in their chairs on the stage, and the audience hushed when Chikane walked onto the stage from one of the wings, wearing the golden blazer of Fuuka High School. She bowed to the audience, before turning to face her orchestra, and picked up a baton from the elevated conductor's podium. Raising her arms into the air, the orchestra picked up their instruments, and awaited the direction of their conductor.

Chikane kept her arms raised for a moment more, building tension in the silence of the room, before a simple flick of her wrist sounded the drums.

Himeko's eyes widened as the force of the music bounced all around the auditorium, reverberating again and again, the strength of the sound somehow able to reach deep into her chest and pound her heart in tune to the rhythm of the song. The introduction of the base and cellos in a minor cord continued to heighten the dramatic tension of the song, and the momentum grew until it crescendo into a pause of complete silence - a breath of relief - before the song progressed on.

The first song the orchestra played was through-composed, each part different, without a repeating verse/chorus combination, and was the least contemporary, most classical of the set. And yet, even without the benefit of vocals, somehow Himeko could understand that a story, a very personal, familiar story, was being told: _theirs_.

Eyes widening, the time-displaced woman found herself suddenly able to understand what Rosa Canina had said earlier when she had said that listening to Chikane's music had made it seem like the singer had known Himeko for years: She could very clearly hear Chikane's voice in the music - her feelings, her thoughts, her _love_ \- in every note and every chord, in every crescendo, and every pause. From the tentative vulnerability expressed from the solo flute, to the mournful yearning of the viola, and the fleeting hope coming forth from the entire woodwinds section, Himeko realized that this song, cryptically titled _KH Number 75_, spoke of their meeting, or rather their reunion - twin halves of the same soul, finally reunited together after a long, long period apart.

Unable to help herself, Himeko found herself closing her eyes and tilting her head back, allowing the music to wash over her, enter into her, stir her heart up all a flutter, as ghosts of memories from lives long past played across the back of her eyelids, not just one life, but a multitude of them, one lining up beside the other like dominoes.

She saw dozens of images of the back of the same girl, one overlaid over the other, a series of windows she could see through. Sometimes she was slightly taller, sometimes slightly thinner. Sometimes her hair was longer and sometimes shorter, sometimes tied back and sometimes freed, but always the same beautiful blue-black river cascading down her back, and always over the pristine purple-lined white garb of the lunar priestess...

And always, every time the girl turns, dozens of ghosts of the same form, and the same set of mesmerizing blue-green eyes sparkling with love and fondness greet Himeko's own. And always, every time, Himeko runs out to greet her, a song of joy in her heart, and always, every time, she reaches out and wraps her arms around her other half's waist, and she feels Chikane-chan's (her Chikane-chan)'s arms hug her close, even as her lips part, and a single word, a single name tumbles with such longing from her lips:

_'... Himeko...!'_

She isn't sure when the song ends, for the images in her mind's eye continue to play, over and over in her head, and even as the rest of the auditorium erupts into applause, Himeko's eyes remain closed, and she doesn't move, except to let a great sigh of regret escape her lips unbidden.

She didn't want to leave this... this marvelous place in her heart, in her mind, in her soul, where there was nothing else but Chikane-chan's warmth in her arms, and Chikane-chan's scent in her nose, and Chikane-chan's voice in her ears...

And all of this invoked from a single song of music, nothing more than notes twisted together into a thread that had none the less managed to wrap themselves around her heart through her ears, and gently tugged her soul forward.

The song was sublime.

And it wasn't even the best of the set.

It wasn't until an undetermined amount of time later, when it seemed like the next song was due to begin, that Himeko finally opened her amethyst eyes, cloudy and dark from the fuzzy memories that were trying to push their way to the forefront of her mind.

* * *

By the end of the first song, the audience erupted into enthusiastic applause, and Chikane turned to give them a bow of appreciation, though her eyes, of course, sought only Himeko's. It was a little bit regretful that Chikane could not capture Himeko's own, to ask her beloved without words for her thoughts on the performance, as Himeko's eyes remained shut, her hands lightly clasped in her lap.

Chikane could not help but frown, feeling a hint of worry-tinged disappointment enter into her heart at her beloved's reaction (or lack thereof). But before she could dwell further on it, out of the corner of her eyes, she caught the movement of Rosa Canina coming onto the stage, a trio of backup singers from the student choir accompanying her to the edge. The vocalist's appearance silenced the audience, so that the only sound in the room was the powerful 'thock' of her stiletto heels echoing against the hardwood of the stage.

As Rosa Canina walked out onto the stage, her eyes caught Chikane's own, and she gave the younger woman a nod of the head, and a smile bordering on mischievous. Chikane, for her part, simply lowered her eyes before flicking them back up. She gave Himeko one last look in the audience (regrettably, Himeko's eyes were _still_ closed) and turned back to face the orchestra, raising her baton up into the air in a readying position.

The singer stopped in the middle of the stage, just a few feet in front of Chikane, obscuring most of the conductor's lower half from the view of the audience, and turned her sensual smile onto the crowd, who ate this all up. By this time of course, despite being a last minute replacement, the rumour mill had already spread news about Rosa Canina's substitution for the original singer, and there was a smattering of applause and wolf whistles from her fans in the audience. She looked through the crowd, making eye contact several times to the thrill of those fans, before she spied the one she was looking for. Her lips curled into an amused smile, as she waited for Himeko to open her eyes. When the kimono clad woman finally did, blinking a few times confusedly before her eyes focused and trained on the most visible figure on the stage, the Italian trained singer gave her a playful wink.

_'Pay attention.'_ The wink seemed to say.

And then Rosa Canina turned her head a little bit to utter something softly over her shoulder to her conductor, before turning her attention back onto her audience. Chikane nodded, and with a flick of her baton, the second song sounded.

A rush of excitement filtered through the crowd; this song,_ KH Number 87_, was the most contemporary in composition, and the one that seemed to resonate with the public the most - the one that had ultimately won the most accolades for its composer.

It started off tentatively, a single bell-like fibreglass xylophone repeating a melancholic refrain before it was supported by the boom from all the horns in minor, mounting a dramatic clench in the air that became downright hypnotic when the beat of the base kicked in, giving the song its pulse.

And then the professional singer took a deep breath, opened her mouth, and the sound that came forth from her lips was absolutely incredible. Like any properly trained opera singer worth her salt, Rosa Canina's voice boomed forth and filled the entire auditorium with a power that dwarfed even the orchestra behind her, without need for a microphone. She was singing from that pinnacle spot on the stage that allowed her voice to bounce and resonate all around the room, magnifying her projection just that much more, and everyone was taken aback by the strength of the performance, not least of which was Himeko herself.

Rosa Canina was not singing in Japanese, though Chikane had written the song in her native language. It had been translated into Italian for the sake of the movie, popularized world-wide in Italian, and that was the language that the vocalist was singing, and though Himeko could not understand the words themselves, the dark, all-encompassing passion of the song was powerful, and clear:

_I want you, _thundered the harmony of the horns.

_I need you, _answered the refrain from the strings.

_You are mine, and I'll suffer no one else to have you, _promised the notes in the melody.

The dark passion in the verse bordered on an almost unhinged feeling of need, an ode to desire so long denied that its sufferer had long since succumbed to madness. And then came the intensity of the repeating chords in the chorus, great and terrible and almost overwhelming in its raw, primal hunger: _I will mark every inch of you, claim every fragment of you as my own, ravage you endless. Everything that is you will be mine, and I will never allow for your release. Forever will we intertwine, captives of the madness of our ardour. Your screams join my own, begging for what, we known not. We shall not be sated until our bodies are as one, and even this will not be enough. Nothing will ever be enough. Nothing will ever be enough. _

And so the song built, and built, the intensity of the orchestra driven ever higher and higher at the command of its conductor, crowned by a performance of stunning quality by a lead vocalist whom had completely surrendered herself to the wild, uncontrollable lust of the piece, her body bent and her eyes squeezed tightly shut as she practically writhed from the painful effort it took to belt forth the words with the overwhelming passion the song demanded of its players for the dark, mad, all-encompassing _need_ that was its soul to be properly communicated.

_Feel no fear, but how can you not, when I myself shake from the need to have all of you, subsume you within me, as you have consumed my heart, my mind, my sanity, from our very first touch. Hunger and madness, longing for darkness. Spirals into oblivion, for you to be mine. Nothing will ever be enough. Nothing will ever be enough._

When finally the song crescendo to its climax, resounding in the lower belly of every single body in the room, there was not a single soul left unaffected, not a single man or woman left un-hungered. The stunned silence stretched for an eternity after the song's end, no one quite sure of what to do as they simply stared at the vocalist whom was still gasping deeply for breath after the intensity of her performance left her throat potentially hurt.

It wasn't until Chikane left her podium to walked up to Rosa Canina and help to right her, concern on her features, that the audience leapt to their feet in a standing ovation of appreciation.

The singer gratefully accepting the composer's assistance in standing upright, and Chikane called for something from offstage. Someone came running from the wings with a bottle of water, which Chikane quickly took, opened and handed to the singer, who accepted gratefully.

All this time, the audience continued to cheer and clap, until Rosa Canina finally took a deep breath, smiled beautifully, and gave the crowd a wave, which only served to rile them up a little more.

From where she was clapping wildly in the audience, Himeko could see Rosa Canina say something to Chikane that caused her to blush a little, before the vocalist laughed, and gave the younger woman a hug and kisses on her cheeks.

And then she turned to leave the stage, waving a goodbye 'ciao' to everyone as she left.

The last person Rosa Canina looked for in the audience before she left the stage was Himeko, and her warm eyes found Himeko's amethyst own.

The vocalist smiled knowingly and winked a second time: _Were you paying attention?_

Himeko's pulse quickened, as she looked away from the vocalist and to the composer who's message the singer had been tasked with delivering.

Chikane was gazing at her with an almost openly vulnerable hope in her eyes, and Himeko felt her heart quicken again, pounding wildly all over the place, culminating in a wide, breathless smile spreading across her face.

_Yes,_ her smile promised. _Yes, a thousand times, yes._

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

So, once upon a time, this part here was supposed to be chapter '3' of FuMoofu and it wasn't supposed to have anything to do at all with cultural festivals or 'Himeko wakes up 300+ years old'. Then I decided to do NaNo, and all of a sudden, all these concepts just started weaving themselves together, and 'A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts' happened.

The song that I was listening to over and over again and which was the inspiration for Chikane's song for Himeko is called 'Tourner dans le vide' by Indila. Guubear and I fell head over heels in love with her album Mini World. I don't understand French at all, and I have no idea what she's singing about; she could be lamenting the recent increase in dairy prices for all I know, but hot damn if this song isn't all sorts of sexy and dramatic! XD

Kanina Shizuka is from Maria-sama ga Miteru. I needed a character who was a really powerful singer, and it felt really wrong to bring Alyssa Searss in (who would only be, like, 9 years old right now or something), for a song that was supposed to be dripping sex all over the place.

The next chapter is the last in this story arc! And as a heads up, it is most definitely rated M! XD

Cheers,

jen-chan

jen-chan-shaw. livejournal. com

jen-chan-shaw. tumblr. com

* * *

OMAKE I: Her Adoring fans

[CHIKANE is standing in front of her orchestra and then extends her hand off stage to motion in her GUEST VOCALIST. HARUKOW trots confidently onto the middle of the stage and then stands on her hind legs. The orchestra starts to play.]

HARUKOW: Ehem! [Clears her throat] Moooou! Moooooooou! [Totally off key]

CHIKANE: [Giant veins popping out of her head] God grief, when is this story arc going to end?!


	8. Chp 3-6 - A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMooFu

Revolutions FuMooFu – A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts – Part VI

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic (with cameos from other series)

October 19, 2014 - November 10, 2014

Total Arc Word Count: Approx 27,000

Part VI Word Count: Approx 5,600

Please enjoy! There are more author's notes at the end and comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated!

* * *

Chikane's heart was pounding with anticipation as she fumbled to put her key into the front door of her home with Himeko, her tawny haired beloved standing quietly beside her, holding onto her hand so tightly, it almost hurt.

The rest of the concert had been almost tortuous. Chikane had wanted to go to Himeko's side but as there weren't any seats left in the audience, she had had to stay in the wings of the stage, impatiently waiting for the regular conductor to finish so that she could take her leave without being rude. Rosa Canina's performance had left her body trembling and aching for Himeko's company, and she had wanted nothing more than to take Himeko home and then tear her clothes off (even though some part of her was still worried that perhaps her time-displaced beloved might not currently return her love in quite the same way).

As it was... she didn't have to worry, nor did she have to wait. A few minutes into the next set, and Himeko had magically appeared in the wings of the stage, and that look in her eyes as she had uttered, in a soft, husky whisper, "take me away," had sent Chikane almost running for the nearest taxi stand.

Himeko had said nothing more, simply grabbing onto Chikane's hand tightly and refusing to let go for anything. She got into the car with no fuss and no words, and the ride in the taxi had felt stupidly long and filled with an awkward silence as the driver had tried to make small talk and completely failed to notice that the terseness with which his questions were being answered was his cue to _shut up_.

Opening the door, Chikane quickly led Himeko inside, and she didn't even have that door properly closed and locked before Himeko finally let go of her hand to push her bodily up against the wall and cupped both hands around Chikane's face.

"Himeeoommph-!" Chikane moaned as Himeko captured her lips with her own in a hard, long, hungry kiss. She only broke contact to allow the younger woman a short gasp for breath before she descended upon her again, parting her lips with a tongue eager to explore and lay claim. By this time, Himeko's hands had left Chikane's face and were now urgently pulling Chikane's blazer back over her shoulders, insistently tugging the stubborn jacket off of Chikane's long arms. It caught on Chikane's elbows, effectively trapping her arms behind her, and Himeko's frustrated reaction to this impediment was to think,_ 'oh to hell with it'_, and let Chikane finish getting the tangly item off of herself while she fumbled with the scarf once tied primly (but not quite so anymore) around the taller woman's neck, and then worked her way down the stubborn buttons of her shirt.

Chikane gave a murmur of frustration herself, her attention split four different ways as she frantically rotated her shoulder in an attempt to work her stupid! stubborn! jacket! off one arm, and then tried to fling said jacket off her other arm (not entirely successfully on the first try, but mostly successful on the second). At the same time, her mouth pushed back against Himeko's own, tongues wrestling, even as she tried to angle her head out of the way so that Himeko could get at her neck scarf all the while keenly aware that her lover's weight was pressed right up between her legs against her sex, trapping her body against the wall.

One final fling of her arm accompanied by a grunt of effort, and her jacket went sailing into the air, landing in some forgotten corner, and Chikane found her arms free once more. The massive action had incentivized Himeko into a bit of a frenzy and she lost all sort of patience with the rest of Chikane's buttons and simply pulled at the shirt with as much might as she could, popping the rest of the buttons to expose Chikane's pretty, lavender bra.

Now with her arms free and not to be outdone, Chikane bent her knees a little, wrapped her arms around Himeko's thighs just under the bum, and then lifted the smaller woman up into the air, stumbling a little as she tried to walk forward to their bedroom. Himeko gave a small cry of surprise that quickly turned into a laugh of delight at suddenly finding no purchase beneath her feet, and she wrapped her arms tightly around Chikane's head, tilting it upwards so that she could capture her beloved's lips once more, kissing her silly.

So absorbed was Chikane in this warm, wet action about her face that she quickly lost her balance, slipped, and sent the both of them tumbling down onto the floor - Chikane hitting the ground first, gallantly acting as cushion for Himeko, but not so roughly that she couldn't immediately run her hands into Himeko's locks, mussing up her hair as she held her beloved's mouth against her own, allowing her own tongue to take its turn past her lips and partake in the warm that was Himeko.

"Why...!" Himeko finally gasped, breaking off the kiss, even as she regarded the blue-black haired woman beneath her with smoldering, hooded eyes, heavy with desire. "Why didst thou not disclose earlier, that we were lovers?!"

Chikane blinked up at Himeko owlishly, her head still spinning from the force of the kiss that had knocked her flat on her back on the floor, literally. "Uh..." She managed to say (admittedly not with the most Chikane-like eloquence). One blink became two became three and then Chikane managed to recover some small semblance of her usual mental capacity and a small smile came to her face. "... but didn't I?" She teased.

Himeko considered what the beautiful young woman beneath her was suggesting, and thought back to the events of the day - her mistress casually addressing her while still in the nude, the chivalry throughout the day, the benign jealousy with Arisugawa Juri - and Himeko's eyes went wide with epiphany.

All those things could have believably gone over Himeko's head as being far too subtle, but how could she have missed the act of seduction that had been the young woman's donning of that utterly revealing outfit in her class's cafe?

It was almost as though Chikane had had to sit Himeko down in front of an orchestra and serenade her with songs of lust and -ohwait.

"Oh, Chikane-sama! Don't tease me so! Thou knowest mine mind is not as sharp as thine!" Himeko gave a cry of happy disbelief and then bent down to push another long kiss, another hungry kiss, past Chikane's lips and teeth, tasting her, claiming her, savoring her, chasing away all of Chikane's higher mental faculties once more.

"This entire day," Himeko breathed, murmuring against Chikane's chin has her lips left Chikane's own to nibble along her jawline, her neck, that sensitive spot by her ear, as one hand roamed freely down Chikane's body to pull the rest of her ripped shirt out from where it had been tucked into her skirt, "have I felt the strangest sensation within me, the nature of which I could comprehend not. A tightness, in mine heart, mine stomach, mine loins, stretched to breaking, tension divine and all encompassing! Oh, Chikane-sama, how this body ached for thee so! For the touch of thine lips and hands and flesh upon it!

The breathless hunger in that confession was enough to drive Chikane crazy with the all encompassing need to fulfill her beloved's desires, and she rolled them both over so that she could pin Himeko to the floor, and desperately scratched at the obijime string that kept Himeko's obi tight against her middle.

The ties were stubborn! Or maybe Chikane just wasn't in the right frame of mind to appreciate how to untie a simple knot, but in any case, their struggles had loosened Himeko's kimono up top precariously so that it easily slipped over and exposed one of Himeko's shoulders, as well as part of a bare breast. The bottom half of the kimono had also been spread apart, up past Himeko's knees, so that she could move her legs freely, kick even, or maybe wrap one leg around Chikane's hips, which was exactly what she did now.

It really was just the supposedly 'decorative' string around the obi at Himeko's middle section that kept the kimono on at all, since the obi itself had also become loosened.

Chikane almost bared her teeth at this frustratingly well tied knot that was keeping her from claiming her beloved's body as though it was her own rightful property, and Himeko decided she couldn't quite wait for Chikane to completely undress her so she simply pulled Chikane's hand downwards past the obi to slip underneath the layers of the kimono, all the while still suckling and biting at Chikane's ear.

Chikane almost moaned with bewildered arousal as she discovered nothing else underneath Himeko's kimono between her legs but delightful flesh, warm and moist with need and the small, soft, inviting patch of hair that accompanied it just over top. "H-Himeko! Y-you didn't have panties on this entire time?" She gasped, the apparent scandal serving to drive her excitement to ever higher levels, heat rising under her collar sharply with this discovery.

"P-panties?" Himeko panted, even as she reluctantly released her teeth from Chikane's ear to speak. She blinked blurrily at her beloved, barely able to see past her lust, and her brow crinkled with frustration. "What are these 'panties' thou speakest of?" And then she decided that her lips had parted from Chikane's skin long enough and pulled Chikane's face back towards her mouth, nibbling up her jawline once more as she reached inside Chikane's shirt, into her bra to cup her hand against one full breast and give it a squeeze.

Chikane's eyes almost rolled into the back of her head as Himeko's fingers found the sensitive tip of her breast and went to work on it.

Underpant-what? Chikane suddenly couldn't remember her original question anymore. "N-nothing," She moaned, a quiver traversing up her spine as Himeko continued to fondle her. "Th-they're nothing!"

There was definitely a smile in Himeko's words as she breathily purred into her lover's ear, "... then why hast thou stopped thine ministrations?"

And Chikane quickly remedied her error by twisting her head to crush her mouth once more against Himeko's own, pushing the tawny-haired woman back down onto the floor as she laid down on top of her. Her hand massaged the soft patch of hair between Himeko's legs for a moment more before she dipped her wrist and pushed a finger inside the inviting warmth just underneath.

Himeko gave a moan of delight as she tilted her head back and she quickly started to lost the attention she had been gathering on Chikane's breasts, her hand almost spasming involuntarily (as did the rest of her arm) against Chikane's chest instead. That sound was all the encouragement Chikane needed, sending shivers down her own body that trembled intensely inside her own sex. She pulled her finger out deftly and brought a second one into play, circling them around that sensitive nub just north of Himeko's entrance the way she knew her lover liked it be serviced, before pushing both fingers back inside to stroke at that particular spot inside that never failed to make Himeko scream - which she did now.

"C-Chi-!" The tawny haired woman cried, unable to focus at all anymore, unable to do much of anything except cling to her lover as Chikane pulled her fingers out once more, spreading the slickness about, only to thrust back inside again, now grinding the hilt of her palm against Himeko's clit. Another cry of rapture tumbled from Himeko's lips as she opened her eyes a crack. Those eyes were completely unfocused, pupils completely dilated with arousal, and Himeko stared up at Chikane's face without really being able to see her or, perhaps could see nothing but her beloved's visage in her mind's eye. And then those eyes snapped shut again, and Himeko buried her face against Chikane's shoulder, and bit into it.

Chikane gave a cry far more of pleasure than of pain though she definitely felt that as well and involuntarily thrust deeper inside Himeko's body, grinding the base of her palm hard against Himeko's sex and causing the woman to give a wild jerk before shamelessly pressing up further against her lover's palm for more.

They were both quivering now, and Chikane could not help but smile as she gazed down at the face of her beloved, who had released her shoulder from her teeth, and had buried her face against it instead. A sense of satisfaction mixed with the heady, intoxicating arousal that had flooded her insides as she timed her thrusts and grinds to the rhythm of the rocking of Himeko's hips. Chikane could visibly track the heightening of Himeko's pleasure by the way her beloved was screwing her eyes shut tighter and tighter, even as she could feel the tension mounting inside Himeko's body by the contraction of the muscles around her fingers, as well as the scratches that were appearing on her skin from where Himeko's nails (neatly trimmed) were none the less digging into her flesh.

And then Himeko's body arched right off of the floor and she threw her head back as she found her climax, rewarding Chikane's efforts with a great, breathless cry of her lover's name.

_"Chi... kane...c-chan...!"_

And a whimper of pleasure left Chikane's own lips as she took in the utterly intoxicating sight of Himeko spending. She carefully kept Himeko up on the crest of her orgasm as long as possible, adjusting her hand a little to use her palm to cup Himeko's mound, applying pressure on that sensitive nub with the base of her palm to periodically boost Himeko back up, losing count of the continuing throbs.

Eventually, the tawny haired woman finished and flopped boneless to the floor, all the tension bleeding out of her, leaving her slick with sweat and other fluids. Himeko's eyes fluttered open and she gazed up at Chikane with such a familiar look of adoration that Chikane couldn't help but give her a small fond smile as she brushed a lock of hair out of her eyes.

Himeko - her Himeko - had returned.

"Chikane-chan?" Himeko smiled, speech patterns all back to normal.

"Okaeri," Chikane uttered softly, leaning down to give her beloved a soft kiss on the cheek. "Welcome back."

The tawny-haired woman blinked slowly a few times, before a warm smile spread across her face. "Tadaima." Reaching down, she took Chikane's hand from where it was and brought it up to her face to kiss her lover's slick fingers gently with appreciation for their fine work. "Sorry for being such an inconvenience today," she apologized. "I was chasing a bunny in my memories last night, and before I knew it, I had gone a little more deeply down the rabbit hole than I meant to..."

"Uhn," Chikane shook her head. "Not at all; it was fun today." A slight crease of worry marred her brow. "Do you... remember much of it?"

"Yes, everything," Himeko confirmed, a slight blush of embarrassment coming to her cheeks. She had a pretty good idea of what Chikane could have been worried about. "I definitely felt like me the entire day, only I had forgotten a few things. It felt like the entire world went batty, while I was normal. Well, except for you." She smiled. "You were exactly as you should have been the entire day."

"Ah, that's a relief." Chikane smiled another small smile. "I was a little worried you'd want me to put on that hideous maid uniform again, if you didn't remember seeing it today."

They shared the laugh.

When the chuckles died down, Chikane drew languid circles on Himeko's tummy, over her obi. She stared at the obijime string that had given her so much grief just a few minutes ago and finally realized that, in her muddled intoxication, she'd been wrenching at the wrong place. It was a miracle she hadn't ripped the accessory beyond repair with her urgency. Gripping the decorative string where she ought to have with her index finger and thumb, Chikane gave a smooth pull and the knot obediently undid itself.

She lifted the decoration up to eye level and gave Himeko a significant look, eyes half hooded with desire.

The tawny-haired woman smiled knowingly back and then cast her eyes down to the hand she held next to her mouth before flicking her eyes back up to meet Chikane's own as she wrapped her lips around Chikane's fingers to give them a suck.

Chikane's eyes widened as figurative napalms of provocation went off between her thighs, sending her sex all a-quiver with anticipation as Himeko righted herself up into a sitting position on the floor. Without the obijime string, the obi itself had loosened enough that Himeko was able to quickly discard the rest of her clothing, leaving her completely nude as she crawled upright to face her lover, and captured her mouth in another long, drawn out kiss - not as hungry as their earlier ones, but still plenty lovely in its urgency.

Even as they sucked at each other's lips, Himeko moved her palms up over the flat of Chikane's stomach, over her breasts and took the lapels of her shirt into her hands. The shirt was a bit of a write-off as Himeko pulled the rest of it back over Chikane's shoulders; both of them could clearly hear the ripping sound of fabric being torn further, and that sound only served to drive them more mad with arousal (though Chikane suspected Himeko would feel poorly for the shirt afterwards).

Removing the shirt uncovered the magnificent bite mark Himeko had left on Chikane's shoulder and Himeko couldn't help but give Chikane another apologetic look when she noticed it, gently touching it with a finger.

"I'm sorry, Chikane-chan," Himeko mourned, "did I do this?"

"Don't worry about it," the blue-black haired woman simply dismissed with a grin as she ducked in to continue the kiss.

And the tawny haired woman took the opportunity to reach around her beloved to undo the hooks in her bra, which she also slid off Chikane's shoulders shortly thereafter. This she flung over her head with careless abandon; it sailed across the room and caught on the door knob of the front door.

Having rendered her lover topless, Himeko then gave Chikane a pleased smile as she reached up and continued the play she had been interrupted from earlier, brushing her thumb in slow circles around Chikane's already cruelly teased nipples and drawing a moan.

Chikane found herself settling back onto her elbows as she rolled her head back, and this allowed Himeko to then bring her mouth to her lover's breasts, sucking and nipping and sending great sparks of lust cascading through Chikane's limbs with each swirl of her tongue, each nip of her teeth.

Pushing Chikane further down until she was flat on the ground, Himeko meandered her kisses down from Chikane's breasts to her taunt tummy, tickling her belly button before moving further down to catch the zipper of Chikane's skirt with her teeth and pulled that fastener down. A wiggle and a pull and soon both skirt and panty followed Chikane's bra to sail through the air and be discarded away.

Settling down between Chikane's legs, Himeko gave her lover's slick, almost dripping slit a long, slow lick with her tongue to lap up the excess moisture, and Chikane gave a moan of approval, burying her hands into Himeko's hair in encouragement as she held her lover's face against her.

By this point, Chikane was so close to completion that it didn't take Himeko long to finish her off as she swirled her tongue about her lover's opening, darting inside at times to taste it, before coming back out to apply more swirling, wet pressure against Chikane's clit, at times deftly, applying knowledge of her lover's preferences to elicit feathered sighs of appreciation, at times coyly to make her beloved beg for more with whimpers of need.

Himeko didn't stop when Chikane came the first time, a loud ecstatic cry escaping her lips.

She didn't stop when Chikane came the second time, shortly after the first.

She didn't stop the third time either.

It wasn't until Chikane was involuntarily shivering from all the releases piled one after the other, and her voice was hoarse from screaming out Himeko's name again and again, did the tawny haired woman finally bring herself upwards so that they were face to face once more, resting her body over top of her young lover's own, glimmering amethyst eyes brimming with fondness capturing blue-green ones bursting with appreciation.

"One last one, Chikane-chan?" Himeko asked, almost impishly.

By this time, Chikane was so completely and utterly spent that she might have wanted to decline in some higher, more rational parts of her mind, but one look into the pleading desire still so clear in Himeko's eyes, and Chikane found herself saying yes with the barest nod of her head.

And Himeko smiled so grandly that Chikane knew she had done right by her lover, who then rewarded her with one long, sweet, gentle kiss that quickly turned into gasps of pleasure from both of them mixed together into one, as she lowered her body over top of Chikane's own, pressing their swollen, throbbing, yearning centres up against each other.

They rocked their bodies slowly against each other, taking turns sliding each other higher and higher up, each brush shooting fireworks inside the other's sex, each stroke sparking electricity down the other's limbs, each grind eliciting moans for _more_ from the other's throat, until they both teetered on the brink, and neither of them could see anything at all except for a blinding light that haloed the other.

"Hi...Himeko...?" Chikane opened her eyes the barest of cracks, rapturous torment knitted into her brow.

"C-Chikane-chan...?" Himeko was shaking with the effort it took to contain herself as she tried to hold herself at that apex of lovemaking.

Chikane's voice was hoarse.

"... I love you."

Sudden tears came to the corners of Himeko's eyes as her beloved's words threatened to throw her over the edge. "I love you-!"

And then they both fell from the top and tumbled into the waiting arms of ecstasy on the other side.

* * *

An indeterminate amount of time later, there was a knock on the front door.

Both Himeko and Chikane bolted upright into a sitting position from where they had curled up against each other in the front foyer. Himeko gave a shriek and pulled the kimono they had been using as a make-shift blanket up to her chest, her actions incidentally ended up exposing quite a bit more of Chikane's body.

"Don't come in!" Chikane cried loudly, a completely uncharacteristic shrillness in her plea. "Just don't come in!"

"Ara, we know better than to come in when we can see _this_ hanging from the front door, even if it's on the wrong handle," came Shizuru's very dry voice from the other side of said door. Without further warning, an arm stuck in through the crack in the front door that hadn't been shut so properly and both women on the floor could see Chikane's lavender bra dangling from that disembodied arm's finger. "I must say, Chikane-san, this is quite... direct instruction from you. Most people use a sock. Or a tie. Or a scarf."

"Most people would also lock their front door!" Came Natsuki's highly exasperated (though clearly amused) voice from the other side. "Or at least make sure it was closed! Geez, guys, you left the auditorium in such a rush, we got worried. You're hella lucky most everyone decided to wait in the lobby."

"Which was, incidentally, _hours_ ago," Shizuu's voice continued helpfully. "But don't worry - we let Kaoru-sensai and Rosa Kanina know you were eating in, and we took them out to dinner on your behalf."

There was no verbal response from Himeko and Chikane's side of the door - just the mad thumping sound of two people scrambling. One set of feet came towards the front door, and Chikane's face appeared in the crack to give Shizuru the most withering of glares (she was careful to keep the rest of her naked form behind the door).

"Thank you very much for your assistance," the blue-black haired young woman said, the dryness in her voice easily rivaling her friend's earlier words. "I'll be sure to return the favor as _soon_ as I get the chance."

Shizuru simply smiled, and held her arm up. Chikane's bra still dangled from her fingers.

The vividness of the crimson on Chikane's cheeks would have done Himeko proud. Shizuru could practically feel the heat of embarrassment radiating from Chikane's arm as she had to reach through the door to swiped her bra back (allowing Shizuru to catch glimpse of a terrific bite mark on her shoulder), before she could close the front door the rest of the way with a slam.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Aaand I have no real notes for this one. This is just 5,000 words of straight up smut, although I do note that I am still largely in-line with my previous guidance with this story arc that FuMooFu was going to be roughly 90% fluff and 10% smut. XD

Anyhow, this concludes the "A Cultural Festival in 6 Parts" story arc! I hope you liked it! I thought about waiting a couple of days after Part 5 to release this and then thought, eh? why? there's only one slice of cake (I mean life) left, so part 5 and part 6 have been released on the same evening.

Oh, and 'G', I know I dedicated this Cultural Festival Arc to you, but on Dezo's advice in the reviews, I think this last chapter has to go to guubear for the sake of continuing harmony in our household. :)

... also, I just realized that after 250,000+ words, Chikane and Himeko have not actually said 'I love you' to each other yet. O_o; ; I... have no idea how I managed to let that happen and _had_ to rectify it ASAP.

I'm working on a few different other FuMoofu ideas right now, and am roughly 66% of the way through NaNoWriMo as well. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be able to release any more chapters until mid December at the earliest (if that), since none of the chapters are far enough along. : ( Forgive me, guys! You might want to consider following this story, if you'd like notification for its next update!

Cheers,

jen-chan

jen-chan-shaw. livejournal. com

jen-chan-shaw. tumblr. com

* * *

OMAKE I: Yeah, It's Getting A Little Old

[CHIKANE and HIMEKO are in the wild throes of passion in the middle of the hallway.]

CHIKANE: Himeko!

HIMKEO: Chikane-chan!

CHIKANE: Himeko!

HIMEKO: Chikane-chan!

[From off screen] MIAKA: Tamahome!

[From off screen] TAMAHOME: Miaka!

[From off screen] MIAKA: Tamahome!

[From off screen] TAMAHOME: Miaka!

[CHIKANE and HIMEKO stare off screen and then stare at each other, and then impishly extract their limbs from around each other.]

HIMEKO: [Pushing index fingers together sheepishly] Maybe we shouldn't say each other's names so much.

CHIKANE: That's... going to be hard. I think your name makes up about 50% of my dialogue in this fic and possibly canon too.

[CHU-CHU shows up beside HIMEKO and CHIKANE.]

CHU-CHU: Chu.

CHIKANE: Oh, I suppose you're right, it could be worse. We could be stuck just saying our _own_ names.

* * *

OMAKE II: Not In Her Contract

[CHIKANE and HIMEKO are sleeping peacefully in each other's arms after their lovemaking in the hallway. At some point, someone was supposed to have knocked on the door and/or walk in on them.]

HIMEKO: Do you think Shizuru-chan missed her cue?

CHIKANE: It seems like it. [Gets up, grabs the remains of her shirt to cover her front and walks to the front door to peek at the other side. HIMEKO follows her, using the kimono to cover her modesty] Is something the matter?

[In the hallway, a great production of directors, producers, writers, lighters, cameramen, agents, make-up and hair people are trying to coax HARUKOW wearing a dressing gown towards the door.]

HARUKOW: [Indignant] Mou!

DIRECTOR: [Turns to CHIKANE &amp; HIMEKO] Aaah, sorry Chikane-san, Himeko-san, but we're having difficulties with Harukow. She says it's written in her contract that she absolutely does not do nude scenes.

HIMEKO: [Very confused] But Haruka-chan isn't even the nude one in this scene!

DIRECTOR: [Shifty eyes] Yeah, about that...

CHIKANE: ... ... ... ! [Grabs HIMEKO's hand and makes a run for it] Forget it! No way! Shiznat can take the next arc, we are NOT putting up with Harukow anymore!

* * *

OMAKE III: Time for the Mai-Hime Style Preview

[SHIZURU's voice can be heard voicing over a series of fast paced clips edited together very confusingly and with deliberate misrepresentation so brazen the AUTHOR should be ashamed of HERSELF but totally isn't HAHA!]

SHIZURU: [Shaking her fist threateningly at the CAMERA as she says this] Next time on Revolutions FuMooFu, Natsuki and I will have so much madly passionate and powerful sex, this chapter is going to seem chaste in comparison!

NATSUKI: [Sweatdropping wildly] What?! Shizuru, wait, this isn't a contest!

SHIZURU: [Unholy crimson eyes practically glowing] Oh, but don't you see, Natsuki? It most absolutely is, so you best gird your loins! But not literally, because I need to maintain quick and efficient access!

NATSUKI: [Sweatdrops multiplying exponentially] ... ... ...

* * *

_*NOT AN OMAKE BUT AN EXTRA SCENE FOR IF YOU STAY IN THE MOVIE THEATRE AND SIT THROUGH ALL THE CREDITS XD* _

The pattern of waking up without Himeko in her arms was starting to alarm Chikane, and her eyes snapped wide open as soon as she was able to comprehend that that was pillow her hand was clutching rather than her beloved's body. Pulling herself upright, she gazed about the room and quickly found her woman at the writing desk in the corner. This morning, instead of wearing Chikane's shirt (which had been so unfortunately ripped the night before), Himeko had settled for simply draping Chikane's blazer over her shoulders with only underwear on underneath.

The tawny-haired woman was bent over her journal, scribbling away.

Swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, Chikane clutched the sheet up to her chest in modesty in case her beloved had woken up several hundred years old again and made her way over to Himeko, but she didn't have to worry.

Hearing Chikane's movements, Himeko looked up, and smiled. "Good morning, Chikane-chan," Himeko said, lifting her head up to accept a soft peck on the lips from her lover.

"Good morning, Himeko." Chikane replied, her eyes flicking down to the journal. She smiled faintly. "Detailing yesterday's adventures?"

Himeko laughed. "Well, it was a good one, wasn't it?"

"I must admit I did quite enjoy the ending." Chikane chuckled as she gave Himeko a second gentle kiss on the top of her head. "Do you have enough in the journal yet to show me?"

"No, not quite yet." Himeko tapped her beloved on the nose playfully. "But soon. I promise."

Chikane let a mock sigh leave her lips. "Oh, alright." She nuzzled at her beloved's ear. "This is now two mornings in a row you've woken up before me to attend to this journal. I wonder if I should be feeling jealous." Her smile grew a little mischievous, "should I be pulling you away from it and back to bed with me as you would normally insist?"

For some reason, Himeko sweatdropped. "Oh, well, you know, I just... couldn't sleep..."

"Oh?" Chikane cocked an eyebrow; Himeko usually slept very well – especially after as vigorous a session as they had the previous evening. "What's happened? Is something wrong?"

Himeko blushed, tilting her head to the side and reaching behind it to rub the back of her head sheepishly. Except that as she tilted her head to the side, there was a very audible and very loud 'pa-cock!'crunching sound coming from her neck, and the older woman's amethyst eyes went wide.

"Owowowowow!" She moaned, grabbing for her neck.

Chikane tried to keep the sweatdrops from appearing on the back of her head (she was normally as good as Shizuru was at keeping the unsightly gags away), but these ones managed to beat her. "Himeko?" She asked, concern lacing her brow as she reached out to put her hand on her beloved's shoulder.

"It's okay! I'm okay!" Himeko lied, because she was still very clearly wincing, as several other joints on her body started to pop and groan. "But, um, if it's okay, Chikane-chan, let's not make it a habit of sleeping on the hardwood floor so often."


	9. Chp 4 - We Interrupt This Story

[KnM][MH] Revolutions FuMooFu

Revolutions FuMooFu – Chapter 4 – And Now We Interrupt this Fic With...

A Kannazuki no Miko and Mai Hime X-Over Fanfic

By Jen-chan

jen-chan at shaw dot ca

December 15, 2007 – October 11, 2015 and the rest of our lives

Word Count: Approx 2,500

* * *

In the middle of Fuuka Academy's rose garden, a familiar cast of characters were embroiled in an animated discussion that was skirting dangerously towards the territory of full-blown-argument. Off the side of the fountain, many members of FuMoofu's main cast were positioned in a loose circle, their heads close together as they conferred.

Himeko and Chikane were there, as were many of the Hime, including Natsuki and Shizuru, Mai, Mikoto, Nao, Director Fumi and former-Director Mashirou.

Their discussions had formerly been hushed, but as the conversation grew more agitated, bits and pieces of conversation could be easily overheard by the lone woman excluded from the discussions, sitting on the edge of the fountain beside them.

"Of all the stupid, hare-brained ideas she's ever come up with, this one has got to be the worst." The declaration was from Natsuki, arms crossed over her chest as she shook her head in exasperation. "This is doomed to end in disaster."

"Really, Natsuki-chan?" Himeko tapped her bottom lip thoughtfully. "I dunno, I think it's kinda romantic..."

The young woman beside her gave her a startled look. "Really?" Chikane asked. Normally the epitome of cucumber coolness, even she was unable to keep the dubiousness from her voice. But then, of course, this comment had come from Himeko, who held the distinction of being the only woman who could ever get under Chikane's calm without having to try.

Himeko shrugged, a helpless expression on her face. "Well, I'd expect better from you, of course, Chikane-chan, but for Author-san, this is probably the best she'll be able to muster. Poor Guubear-chan..."

"Hey! I'm standing right here!"

The main cast turned to look at the person who had spoken so indignantly – the utterly plain and non-descript woman in her early 30s sitting on the edge of the fountain. She was an unusual visitor to the setting of Revolutions FuMoofu; or at least, to the main story anyway. Whilst the cast conferred, she had been absently petting Harukow, who was lazily munching on some greens from a nearby rose bush while Chu-Chu snored peacefully on her head between her horns.

Harukow looked up at the camera meant to represent the reader's point-of-view as the text acknowledged her existence and gave a low "moou" of disapproval before turning to give the woman petting her a withering glare.

The simultaneously shameless and shameful author of this long-neglected fic sweatdropped. "Aaaah, yes, Haruka, I know this is slightly bending the rules of your contract – that you are only a cow in omake, and not in the fic proper – but please just bear with it for a few more hundred words, okay?"

Harukow sniffed icily. "Mou!"

"Well now, give the readers, assuming there are any left, a little more credit; the fourth wall's been completely obliterated at least 4 times over in the last 5 paragraphs. I'm sure they've figured out by now that this isn't a regular updating chapter to Revolutions FuMoofu. No one could possible mistaken you, dear Haruka, as regularly bovine..."

"Ara, no one doubts that the readers of this little story are intelligent, Author-san," Shizuru interrupted airily, "of course they have suspected by now that this chapter is essentially an extended omake outside of the regular story made for entirely selfish reasons. The question is whether they – and Natsuki and I – will forgive you for it. After all, it's been _months_ since you promised an arc for Natsuki and I, and you _still_ haven't delivered."

As Shizuru said this, Natsuki nodded emphatically beside her with what could only be called a pout on her face.

"Aaah..." The non-descript woman winced and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly as she nodded her head in apology to the neglected couple. "Yes, I know, and I'm really sorry about that. I actually had such high hopes that I'd be able to pump out the Shiznat arc quickly, since it was largely plotted in my head already, but, well, there's just been so many distractions..."

"We know," Nao said flatly, holding up what looked like a hastily stapled together booklet. The title, _'What if Babies Came From the Spirit World?'_ was crudely scrawled over the cover in chicken scratch. "We get it. Korra's a hottie. But you haven't been updating _that_ fic either! So what gives?"

"Well, actually," pushing her index fingers together and demonstrating her complete inability to stay focused, the Author rambled on, "yeah, Korra's pretty awesome, but I think Asami's the one who's really captured muse-chan's attention and-"

"_Asami?_" And then Nao trailed off as she looked over at Chikane and Shizuru (who both raised their perfectly plucked ojou-sama eyebrows back at her in unison) and then rolled her eyes. "Oh, right, who am I kidding. Of course you'd like Asami more."

"Nao-chan, we're losing focus here!" Mai clapped her hands to try to get everyone's attention. "We're gathered here today to try to figure out if we should be allowing the Author to borrow space in this fanfic for utterly selfish reasons, and well," she turned a perplexed expression onto the older woman in question, "to be perfectly honest with you, Author-san, I think we all have... misgivings..."

"Really?" The non-descript woman was crestfallen. "But... why?"

The Hime looked amongst each other to see who would speak up and in the end, it was Director Fumi Himeno who spoke up, her expression one of complicated pity.

"Well... doesn't it seem a little disingenuous to be tricking those poor readers who have been so patiently waiting for a real update with this offering?" Fumi finally asked. "It will cause disappointment for some readers, won't it?"

"Well... maybe..." The Author scratched the back of her head, "but, on the other hand, I dunno, it's a pretty tight-knit readership who've put up with my irregular updates and seem to enjoy the wacky omake; maybe they will find this an amusing diversion rather than a waste of their time? I mean, some self-insert fics can be funny, right? Right?"

A cricket chirped while an annoyed zephyr blew a sleepy tumbleweed across the scene.

The cast looked about each other, unconvinced.

"And what about Guubear-san?" Mashirou asked, hoping another path's logic would resonate with the author's judgement (such that it was) more soundly. "Will she even appreciate this? It is an important question you are asking her, and it should be done in a manner befitting of her importance to you. Could you really say that this... delivery method... is appropriate?"

There was a round of murmurs supporting Mashirou's assessment, and the non-descript author's face fell a little further, looking so utterly pitiful and pathetic that Himeko couldn't help but feel sorry for her and finally said, "um, maybe, Author-san, if you could please clarify for us why you even want to do it in this manner? I mean, there must be a thousand better ways to go about doing this. Why are you so adamant that _fanfic_ is a good way to propose to the woman you love more than anyone else in this world?"

And as Himeko asked this question, everyone settled down, and looked over at the Author who seemed a bit lost in her own head for a while, her mouth opening and closing wordless a few times, until finally, she gave a small smile.

"I wanted to do it in a way that was meaningful to us, you know?" The small smile grew fond, even as the non-descript woman gave a nervous chuckle. "I thought about going to a fancy restaurant, or making dinner for her, or maybe popping the question while we were on vacation somewhere nice, but... none of that really seemed right, you know? She doesn't really like eating out, and if I attempted to make dinner, I'd likely burn down the kitchen instead. Besides, none of those ideas seem to be _us_ enough, you know?"

The author gave another laugh – this one a little more sure-sounding, a little more confident.

"I tried to think about everything that we enjoy together, something meaningful, and, embarrassing as this is to admit... fanfic was how we met, you know? Fanfic was how she first found me, and fanfic was how she came to know me before she even met me. She was the first person who friended me on livejournal. We chatted back and forth, and she was forever cracking me up with her hilarious comments and omake she'd leave in the reviews. We clicked so well, even then. Then my job serendipitously sent me to her city for training, so I asked if she wanted to go out for coffee and the rest is history, but the catalyst of our story, is _your_ guys' stories, so I think she'd actually approve of a proposal coming to her via an ffnet chapter update notification, actually... or at least, I sure hope so, at any rate."

The author's words, clumsy and inelegant though they were, seemed to strike a chord with the cast, and they eyed one another as though their collective opinion was in the midst of swaying.

"But there's so much that could go wrong," Chikane brought up, her voice gentle, as though trying to sooth a child. "What if Guubear-san's not following your stories anymore? Or, what if she gets really busy and doesn't have a chance to read the update until weeks later?"

At this, the non-descript woman couldn't help but smile. "We've been together for 8 years; lived together for 7 of those 8 years. We know each other's habits pretty well by now, so," the non-descript woman looked at her watch, "if I've timed this correctly, then we should have just come home after an evening volunteering at a lantern festival and should have now gone home to relax.

"The first thing she'll have done was changed into her pajamas, while I excuse myself and say I'm taking a shower or something. She'll have gone to sit at her computer while she waits for me, and is going to be playing a game or reading a fanfic. Either way, I just need to hit the "post" button on my phone, then she'll get the email notification on her phone that I've updated, and that should probably be enough to twig her interest to check out the notification, since she knows I'm supposed to be in the bathroom instead and haven't said to her that I was planning on updating FuMoofu, which means I'm probably up to mischief. So she'll be sitting in her chair with one knee up while she twists a lock of hair between her fingers as she reads this (well, maybe the sentences would have weirded her out enough that she's stopped playing at her hair and is now leaning forward and staring at the screen with a massive grin instead). She might be feeling the urge to call out to me and say, _'Jenny! Come here! What the hell is this?!'_ but hopefully she won't and she'll just continue reading for about 30 more seconds..."

"And what, pray tell, is going to happen in another 30 seconds?" Shizuru smiled smugly, an amused sparkle in her crimson eyes. "Honestly, Author-san, you're carrying on as though our consent to your little scheme has already been given."

Now the non-descript woman's smile couldn't help but grow a little cocky. "Hasn't it?"

The Hime look at each other, but they could all see that any signs of their previous disapproval had all dissipated in their eyes.

Shizuru looked over at Natsuki, an eyebrow quirked.

"Well, I suppose, in light of the circumstances, I suppose it will be alright." With a put-upon sigh that didn't fool anyone, Natsuki smiled back at Shizuru and then nodded at the non-descript Author. "If you promise to update Revolutions FuMooFu with Shizuru and mine's story arc sometime soon, then I guess we can grant you this little intermission from the story for your bordering-on-bonkers request. Hopefully, this will not violate the terms of FFnet's user agreement, and our story won't be lost to the four winds of the internet."

"There's always AO3 if that happens!" Mikoto piped up helpfully in the background.

Natsuki coughed. "Yes, well, we'll investigate that avenue as it becomes warranted to do so."

"Alright!"

The Author did a quick celebratory fist pump in the air, completely missing the quick exchange as Chikane leaned over and said softly to Shizuru, "you do realize that the chances of her keeping the promise are abysmal, right? I mean, assuming that her proposal is accepted, when's she going to find the time to put on the local con, plan a wedding, _and_ pump out 50k of fic?"

"Oh, I'm aware," Shizuru sighed, "but honestly, what choice do we have? You remember that god-awful silence between Revolution's Chapter 16 and Chapter 17? She didn't update in close to 16 months! What else can we do except hope against hope, especially," Shizuru sighed and took a long side-ways glance over at the other fanfic that Nao had printed out and was now surreptitiously glancing through, "since the competition for her muse is so strong?"

Chikane couldn't help but see the wisdom in her senior's words and nodded, straightening back up while the Author composed herself.

"Well, for better or worse... here goes nothing!"

The non-descript woman took a deep breath and then turned towards the camera. As she did so, the cast of Revolutions FuMooFu took their cue and faded away, leaving the Author alone, facing the reader's point of view – and one reader in particular (hopefully!).

Reaching into her blazer pocket, she took out the ring box and lowered herself down onto one knee. Taking a deep breath, she gave her beloved the best virtual smile she could muster as describable by text, and asked,

"Suzanne Guubear Lien, assuming that I haven't massively miscalculated here, and you are actually reading this, I promise that I will love you, and treasure you, and will provide you with smutty and/or cracky and/or epic yuri fanfic for the rest of my life. I promise I will grow old with you, and will still find you attractive when we can bounce our boobies off our knees. I promise I will always take care of you and our cat children, and will provide all of you with high protein foods, a clean litter box/bathroom, and tummy rubs as requested.

"So, will you do me the absolute honor of marrying me?"


End file.
